The NTEGRA nanolaboratory provides a unique platform for integration of the most insightful and powerful microscopy and spectroscopy techniques. Due to the complete integration of hardware and software, the NTEGRA Spectra (SPM and Raman Confocal Microscope) is able to perform a wide rage of techniques. The system provides all aspects of SPM, Raman Confocal Microscopy and the only commercial system that supports Tip Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (TERS). The NTEGRA is used in many areas of study including graphene, nanotubes, DNA, polymer science and single molecule research.

 You can sign up at https://acs.ewpoplanner.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=expomap.exhibitorworkshops&event_id=1037 under free exhibitor workshops or send an email to brad@nanounity.com.

-Basic AFM operation (as demonstrated on the MFP-3D AFM)
-Biological sample preparation and interpretation of AFM data
-Choosing cantilevers
-Imaging samples in air and fluids: from molecules to cells
-Force measurements: intra molecular forces and hardness measurements
-Simultaneous AFM and optical microscopy techniques including fluorescence and phase contrast
-Recognizing artifacts

The class will be tailored to the skill level of the participants. You may download a PDF of the information packet that includes additional information and the registration form. We recommend that you fax in your registration as soon as possible as the class fills up quickly. Should you have any questions, please email Asylum Research.

From Fundamentals to Advanced Applications

June 14-17, 2010

Lehigh University

Bethlehem, PA

This course provides an understanding of the concepts, instrumentation, and applications of the rapidly expanding field of Scanning Probe Microscopy (SPM).   Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM) will be covered extensively, but the course will also feature a variety of advanced SPM techniques.  The theory of operation for both imaging and spectroscopy will be addressed, with special attention being paid to instrument artifacts and methods to avoid them.  Crucially, the course will include nearly equal time spent in instruction and hands-on labs. Participants will therefore take away the necessary knowledge and practice to utilize the full potential of SPM systems for applications in the physical and biological sciences, including:

• Practical and theoretical aspects of AFM and STM operation
• Force-distance measurements (AFM indentation, Force-Volume, molecular interactions, instrumented Nano-indentation)
• Mechanical mapping (Phase imaging, multiple/higher order harmonics)
• Fluid measurements (Living cell work, Electrochemistry)
• Electric field/surface potential imaging
• Magnetic field imaging
• Piezo-force microscopy (PFM)
• Nanolithography
• Image Analysis
• System management and probe selection

Instructors: Nancy Burnham (Worcester Polytechnic Institute), Bryan Huey (University of Connecticut), Bruce Koel (Lehigh University), Dmitri Vezenov (Lehigh University), Richard Vinci (Lehigh University)

Participating Companies: Agilent Technologies, Asylum Research,

NT-MDT, Veeco Instruments

Each registrant receives the textbook, Scanning Probe Microscopy and Spectroscopy:  Theory, Techniques, and Applications 2^nd Ed., by Dawn Bonnell (Wiley 2000), as well as detailed laboratory notes for all hands-on exercises.  In addition, everyone receives notes for specific lectures, a list of vendors and equipment suppliers, and the Lehigh DVD that contains free and demonstration versions of useful microscopy software. Sample probes from several vendors are also provided with support from probe manufacturers.

For more information contact:  Sharon Coe (Sharon.coe@lehigh.edu) URL:www.lehigh.edu/microscopy

This tutorial is free to all Biophysical Society Meeting attendees. If you are unable to attend and would like a copy of the presentation, please email terry@asylumresearch.com

The Nanobrücken Nanomechanical Testing Workshop, Feb 24-26, 2010 at INM Saarbrücken in Germany, aims to bring together researchers from the international nanomechanical community in a forum that highlights both techniques and applications. The workshop features an outstanding lineup of keynote and invited speakers. We cordially invite you to attend and encourage you to participate with a contributed oral or poster presentation.

This workshop covers a broad spectrum of nanomechanical testing techniques, applications, and materials. Appropriate topics include but are not limited to fundamentals of contact mechanics, onset of plasticity and fracture, characterization of soft biological materials and polymers, nanotribology, calibration and standards, and experiments in various environments such as controlled temperature and vacuum.

Keynote Address: John Pethica, Trinity College (CRANN)

Confirmed Invited Speakers: Cynthia Volkert, University of Göttingen / Michelle Oyen, Cambridge University / Christian Fretigny, CNRS / Sanjay Biswas, Indian Institute of Science

Abstracts for oral and poster presentations may still be submitted directly via email to nanobrucken@gmail.com until Jan 24 for consideration by the Program Committee. The Program will be announced on Jan 27.

Welcome Reception starts at 6:30pm, Feb 24 / Hysitron User Meeting starts at 8:30am, Feb 25 / Workshop starts at 2:00pm, Feb 25 and ends at 5:30pm, Feb 26

Go to www.hysitron.com/events/nanobrucken2010 for preliminary program information and further workshop details. The workshop’s website will be continually updated.

We look forward to seeing you in Saarbrücken! 

Sincerely,

Your Nanobrücken Program Committee: Prof. Eduard Arzt, INM Saarbrücken / Prof. Roland Bennewitz, INM Saarbrücken / Dr. Jean-Pierre Guin, Université de Rennes / Dr. Oden Warren, Hysitron, Inc.

“AFM and Optical Microscopy in Cell Biology: Successful Data Acquisition and Integration”
Sophia Hohlbauch, Asylum Research

Beer, wine and appetizers will be provided.

If you are unable to attend and would like a copy of the presentation, please email Terry Mehr.

“Energy Dissipation Measurements in Frequency Modulated Scanning Probe Microscopy”
Dr. Roger Proksch, Asylum Research

If you are unable to attend, please email Terry Mehr to receive a copy of the talk.

Progress in nanoscience and nanotechnology requires tools that enable the imaging and manipulation of mater at the atomic and molecular scale. During the last two decades or so, scanning probe based techniques have proven to be most versatile in this regard. Among the various probe-based approaches, atomic force microscopy (AFM) stands out in many ways, including the total number of citations and the breadth of possible applications that range from materials characterization to nanofabrication and biological studies. However, while nanometer scale operation in different environments became routine, atomic resolution imaging remained elusive for a long time.

The reason for this initial deficiency was that contact with the sample blunts atomically sharp tips, which are mandatory for successful atomic resolution imaging. This problem has been overcome in the mid-1990s with the introduction of noncontact atomic force microscopy (NC-AFM), which represents a version of AFM where the cantilever is oscillated close to the sample surface without actually ‘touching’ it. This allows preserving the atomic sharpness of the tip while interaction-induced changes in the cantilever’s resonance frequency are used to quantify the tip-sample distance. Since then, progress has been steady and includes the development of commercial instruments as well as the addition of many new capabilities beyond imaging such as the identification and manipulation of individual atoms.

A series of annual international conferences, started in Osaka in 1998, have contributed significantly to this outstanding performance. Since then, its annual conferences have established as the leading meetings for NC-AFM related topics. Here we report on the outcome of the most recent conference from this series, held at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, from August 10 to August 14, 2009. The conference program, which can be downloaded at http://www.eng.yale.edu/ncafm2009, reflects the maturity of this field, with an increasing number of groups developing strong activities that involve novel approaches and applications covering areas well beyond the original vacuum-based imaging. The conference was complemented by a vendor exhibition featuring the latest developments in NC-AFM equipment and accessories, and a workshop on the measurement of Casimir forces, which included specialized sessions on August 10 with two joint sessions on August 11. For the first time, close interaction between the NC-AFM and the Casimir force communities was established, producing valuable synergies regarding the measurement of small forces at short range. 133 participants from 15 different countries attended the NC-AFM conference and the Casimir workshop. Thereby, the strong contingent from the US (38 participants) reflects the success of the conference in promoting NC-AFM in the US, where relatively few groups are currently employing this technique.

One of the most remarkable developments highlighted at the conference is the extension of dynamic imaging modes to high-resolution operation in liquids, which seemed almost unthinkable just a couple of years ago. State-of-the-art measurements do not just result in atomic resolution, but enable three-dimensional mapping of hydration layers on surfaces with molecular resolution. These developments are already having significant impact in the highly competitive field of biological imaging under physiological conditions. Other areas particularly noteworthy are (1) the continuing development of sophisticated force spectroscopy procedures that are able to map the complete 3D tip-sample force field on different surfaces, which are now able to resolve of the internal structures of molecules and to achieve the mapping of local lateral forces with picometer resolution; (2) the considerable resolution improvement of Kelvin probe force microscopy (reaching, in some cases, the atomic scale), which is accompanied by a thorough, quantitative understanding of the contrast observed; (3) the perfecting of atomic resolution imaging on insulating substrates (in particular oxides), which helps reshaping our microscopic understanding of surface properties and chemical activity of these surfaces; and last but not least (4) the instrumental and methodological developments that pave the way to the atomic-scale characterization of magnetic and electronic properties of nanostructures.

Next year’s conference, which is held August 2-5, 2010, in Kanazawa, Japan, will be accompanied by satellite workshops on bio-imaging, solid-liquid interface, and SPM standardization (satellite workshops are scheduled on July 31-August 1). More information can be found at http://www.afm.eei.eng.osaka-u.ac.jp/ncafm2010/.

This Live Forum is your chance to interact with other researchers, including international experts in NC-AFM, to ask questions, discuss challenges, and share ideas related to all aspects of NC-AFM, including experimental techniques, recent results, theoretical modeling, and applications.

Date: Wed. Oct. 14, 2009

Time: 1:00 – 3:00 pm Eastern Daylight Time (10:00 am – noon Pacific Daylight Time, 19:00 – 21:00 Middle European Time).

Link: Click on “Forums (New)” above, or click here.

Expert Guests: André Schirmeisen, University of Münester; Hendrik Hölscher, Karlsruhe Research Laboratory, Germany; Ruben Perez, Univesidad Autonoma de Madrid; and Udo Schwarz. Yale University

Single Molecule Conductance of DNA Bases and Sequencing by Tunneling; Imaging Nucleic Acids with the AFM
Running time: 56 minutes
April 8, 2009
Speakers: Stuart Lindsay, PhD Arizona State University, Edward and Nadine Carson Professor of Physics and Chemistry Biodesign Institute; W. Travis Johnson, PhD, Research Scientists, Agilent Technologies

Single Molecule Conductance of DNA Bases and Sequencing by Tunneling.
The scanning probe microscope is a great tool for measuring the conductance of single molecules. Tunneling current measurements are sensitive to the hydrogen bonding between base-pairs, while measurements of the conductance of base-nucleoside pairs yields a value for their absolute conductance, opening the way to design of a device that sequences DNA by means of tunneling measurements.

“Imaging Nucleic Acids with the AFM”
Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) can be used to obtain highly accurate, nanometer scale images of nucleic acids, including DNA and RNA, in air or in physiological conditions. This makes the AFM a powerful analytical tool to study the structure and function of DNA. In this seminar the study of nucleic acids via AFM will be discussed and explored.