Vesenka J, Manne S, Giberson R, Marsh T, and Henderson E, 1993.
Colloidal Gold Particles as an Incompressible Atomic Force Microscope
Imaging Standard for Assessing the Compressibility of Biomolecules. Biophysical Journal 65:1-6
ABSTRACT Colloidal gold particles
have multiple uses as three-dimensional atomic force microscopy
imaging standards because they are incompressible, monodisperse,
and spherical. The spherical nature of the particles can be exploited
to characterize scanning tip geometry. As uniform spheres, colloidal
gold particles may be used to calibrate the vertical dimensions
of atomic force microscopy at the nanometer level. The monodisperse
and incompressible nature of the gold can be used to characterize
the vertical dimension of coadsorbed biomolecules.
Simultaneous measurements of gold
with tobacco mosaic virus show that, at the same applied vertical
force, the tobacco mosaic virus is undamaged by blunt tips but
is compressed or disintegrated under sharper scanning styli,
suggesting that specimen degradation is partly a pressure-dependent
effect. |