A silicon qubit platform for in situ single molecule structure determination

Abstract

Imaging individual conformational instances of generic, inhomogeneous, transient or intrinsically disordered protein systems at the single molecule level in situ is one of the notable challenges in structural biology. Present techniques access averaged structural information by measuring over large ensembles of proteins in nearly uniform conformational states in synthetic environments. This poses significant implications for diagnostics and drug design which require a detailed understanding of subtle conformational changes, small molecule interactions and ligand dynamics. Here we tackle the problem by designing a single molecule imaging platform technology embracing the advantages silicon-based spin qubits offer in terms of quantum coherence and established fabrication pathways. We demonstrate through detailed simulation, that this platform enables scalable atomic-level structure-determination of individual molecular systems in native environments. The approach is particularly well suited to the high-value lipid-membrane context, and as such its experimental implementation could have far-reaching consequences for the understanding of membrane biology and drug development.

Roadmap on nanoscale magnetic resonance imaging

“…A variety of theoretical proposals has been put forward [98][99][100][101][102]. Pioneering experiments have reported the magnetic resonance signal of single molecules [103,104] and have demonstrated the reconstruction of the positions of individual electron and nuclear spins with atomic-scale resolution, including for systems with up to approximately 30 spins [105][106][107].…”

“…The quantum sensor consists of a single electron spin, or an array of electron spins, that can be detected and read out optically or electrically and controlled through microwave pulses. Advanced examples of such quantum sensors are the NV center and other defects in diamond and defects in silicon-carbide, as well as donor spins in silicon [102].…”