CRIF:ID- Development of Instrumentation for Single Molecule Trapping and Spectroscopy for Chemistry Research

CRIF-ID项目授予威斯康星大学密尔沃基分校化学系Jorg C.Woehl的这一奖项将为单分子研究的新型工具的开发和建造提供资金，该工具结合了(1)单个荧光分子或其他光学活性纳米颗粒的光学成像和光谱能力，以及(2)在纳米尺度上对其进行受控操作(捕获和定位)的能力。这种新型捕获方案的基本思想是通过在近场扫描光学显微镜的光学孔径尖端的金属层上施加电势，创建一个圆形势能井(静电栅栏)来捕获带电分子，例如膜蛋白或其他横向受限的分子。在该项目的时间范围内，PI的研究小组将建造、测试和表征光学孔径陷阱，以及用于单粒子陷阱所需的软件。单分子光谱学技术导致了对许多物理、化学和生物过程的新理解，因为它们允许观察单个事件，而不是整体平均，从而使人们能够获得分子性质的完全统计异质性。这一知识是重要的，因为它为分析和解释为什么同一物种的两个分子表现出相当不同的生物活性提供了基础。这一仪器将推进单分子捕获领域，用于研究物理、化学和生物过程中的粒子。这项工作将由研究生进行，他们将在尖端科学仪器的设计和建造方面获得宝贵的培训。

This award from the CRIF-ID program to Jorg C. Woehl in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee will fund the development and construction of a novel tool for single molecule research which combines capabilities (1) for the optical imaging and spectroscopy of individual fluorescent molecules or other optically active nanoparticles, and (2) for their controlled manipulation (trapping and positioning) at the nanoscale. The basic idea of the proposed novel trapping scheme is to create a circular potential energy well (an electrostatic corral) to capture charged molecules, such as membrane proteins or other laterally confined molecules, by applying an electric potential to the metal layer of the optical aperture tip of a near field scanning optical microscope. During the project timeframe, the PI's research group will build, test, and characterize an optical aperture trap, and required software for single particle trapping. Single molecule spectroscopy techniques have lead to a new understanding of many physical, chemical, and biological processes since they allow the observation of individual events, free from ensemble averaging, thus giving access to the full statistical heterogeneity of molecular properties This knowledge is important as it provides the basis for analyzing and explaining why two molecules of the same species can, for example, exhibit quite different biological activities. This instrumentation will advance the field of single molecule trapping for the study of particles in physical, chemical and biological processes. The work will be conducted by graduate students who will obtain valuable training in the design and construction of sophisticated scientific instrumentation.