An atomic force microscope nanoscalpel for nanolithography and biological applications

摘要

We present the fabrication of specialized nanotools, termed nanoscalpels, and their applicationfor nanolithography and nanomechanical manipulation of biological objects. Fabricatednanoscalpels have the shape of a thin blade with the controlled thickness of 20-30 nm andwidth of 100-200 rim. They were fabricated using electron beam induced deposition at the apexof atomic force microscope probes and are hard enough for a single cut to penetrate a ~45 nmthick gold layer; and thus can be used for making narrow electrode gaps required for fabricationof nanoelectronic devices. As an atomic force microscope-based technique the nanoscalpelprovides simultaneous control of the applied cutting force and the depth of the cut. Usingmammalian cells as an example, we demonstrated their ability to make narrow incisions andmeasurements of local elastic and inelastic characteristics of a cell, making nanoscalpels alsouseful as a nanosurgical tool in cell biology. Therefore, we believe that the nanoscalpel couldserve as an important tool for nanofabrication and nanosurgery on biological objects.