MRI: Development of an Atomic Force Microscope with Atomic Scale Stability for Biological Studies in Water

这项主要研究仪器（MRI）奖授予了科罗拉多大学，以表彰其开发了一种新型超稳定原子力显微镜（US-AFM），该显微镜旨在解决结构生物学对研究蛋白质结构和构象动力学的原子精确工具的迫切需求。原子力显微镜（AFM）受到针尖和样品之间不需要的机械漂移的限制。在生物学相关条件下（室温液体）发生的环境扰动加剧了这一限制。为了得到广泛的应用，US-AFM的操作和控制需要用户友好，坚固，可靠的室温液体操作。由此产生的仪器允许原子力显微镜的原子灵敏度在一系列学科中得到充分利用，包括生物学、物理学、化学和纳米技术。学生参与这个项目是一个杰出的研究和教育经验，因为它的多学科性质。这些研究的结果将由学生和教师在地区或国家会议上提出，并发表在同行评议的期刊上。

This Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) award is awarded to the University of Colorado for the development of a novel ultrastable atomic force microscope (US-AFM) designed to address the pressing need in structural biology for an atomically precise tool to study protein structure and conformational dynamics. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is limited by unwanted mechanical drift between the tip and sample. This limitation is exacerbated by environmental perturbations, which occur in biologically relevant conditions (room temperature in liquid). To be broadly applicable, operation and control of US-AFM needs to be user-friendly, robust, and reliable for room temperature operation in liquid. The resulting instrumentation allows the atomic sensitivity of AFM to be fully exploited for a range of disciplines, including biology, physics, chemistry, and nanotechnology. Student participation in this project is an outstanding research and educational experience because of its multi-disciplinary nature. Results from these studies will be presented by students and faculty at regional or national meetings, and published in peer-reviewed journals.