Resolution and field-of-view often represent a fundamental tradeoff in microscopy. Atomic force microscopy (AFM), in which a cantilevered probe deflects under the influence of local forces as it scans across a substrate, is a key example of this tradeoff with high resolution imaging being largely limited to small areas. Despite the tremendous impact of AFM in fields including materials science, biology, and surface science, the limitation in imaging area has remained a key barrier to studying samples with intricate hierarchical structure. Here, we show that massively parallel AFM with >1000 probes is possible through the combination of a cantilever-free probe architecture and a scalable optical method for detecting probe–sample contact. Specifically, optically reflective conical probes on a comparatively compliant film are found to comprise a distributed optical lever that translates probe motion into an optical signal that provides sub-10 nm vertical precision. The scalability of this approach makes it well suited for imaging applications that require high resolution over large areas.
Using a novel method developed to quantify the polarizability of photoluminescent nanoparticles in water, we present experimental observation of the extraordinary polarizability exhibited by nanoparticles of commensurate size to the Debye screening length, confirming previously reported theory. Semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) are ideal model nanoparticles to demonstrate this assay, due to their tunable size and bright photoluminescence. This assay is based upon microfluidic chambers with microelectrodes that generate trapping potentials that are weaker than thermal energy. By comparing the local electric field strength and variations in QD concentration, their polarizability was computed and found to agree with estimates based upon the hydrodynamic diameter found using light scattering. Strikingly, the polarizability of the nanoparticles increased 30-fold in low salt conditions compared to high salt conditions due to the increased thickness of the Debye layer relative to the particle radius. In addition to providing evidence that corroborates theoretical work studying direct solutions to the Poisson-Nernst-Planck equations, these observations provide an explanation for previously observed conductivity dependence of biomolecule polarizability. As the polarizability of nanoparticles is of high importance to the electrically-directed assembly of particles, as well as their interactions with other materials in complex environments, we anticipate that these results will be highly relevant to ongoing efforts in materials by design and nanomedicine.
By utilizing the three-dimensional Dirac semimetal (DSM)-strontium titanate (SrTiO3, STO) elliptical hybrid metamaterials, the tunable Fano resonances were systematically analyzed in the THz regime, for example, the effects of asymmetric degrees, DSM Fermi levels, and operation frequencies. Interestingly, an obvious Fano peak is observed by introducing a displacement (asymmetric degree) between STO and DSM resonators. In particular, the amplitude modulation depth (MD) of the Fano transmission peak (reflection dip) is 49.5% (86.65%) when the asymmetric degree ranges from 0 to 20 µm. Furthermore, on the condition that the asymmetric degree is larger than 10 µm, the LC resonance is also excited with an extraordinary Q–factor of more than 25. Additionally, by modifying the Fermi level of DSM layer, the amplitude MD of Fano transmission peak (reflection dip) is 32.86% (67.26%). The results facilitate our understanding of the tunable mechanisms of DSM metamaterials and potentially promote the development of novel plasmonic devices, including filters, modulators and sensors.
In recent years, the emergence of low-dimensional carbon-based materials, such as carbon dots, carbon nanotubes, and graphene, together with the advances in materials science, have greatly enriched the variety of flexible and stretchable electronic devices. Compared with conventional rigid devices, these soft robotic sensors and actuators exhibit remarkable advantages in terms of their biocompatibility, portability, power efficiency, and wearability, thus creating myriad possibilities of novel wearable and implantable tactile sensors, as well as micro-/nano-soft actuation systems. Interestingly, not only are carbon-based materials ideal constituents for photodetectors, gas, thermal, triboelectric sensors due to their geometry and extraordinary sensitivity to various external stimuli, but they also provide significantly more precise manipulation of the actuators than conventional centimeter-scale pneumatic and hydraulic robotic actuators, at a molecular level. In this review, we summarize recent progress on state-of-the-art flexible and stretchable carbon-based sensors and actuators that have creatively added to the development of biomedicine, nanoscience, materials science, as well as soft robotics. In the end, we propose the future potential of carbon-based materials for biomedical and soft robotic applications.
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