An Infrared Nanospectroscopy Technique for the Study of Electric-Field-Induced Molecular Dynamics.

ABSTRACT: Static electric fields play a considerable role in a variety of molecular nanosystems as diverse as single-molecule junctions, molecules supporting electrostatic catalysis, and biological cell membranes incorporating proteins. External electric fields can be applied to nanoscale samples with a conductive atomic force microscopy (AFM) probe in contact mode, but typically, no structural information is retrieved. Here we combine photothermal expansion infrared (IR) nanospectroscopy with electrostatic AFM probes to measure nanometric volumes where the IR field enhancement and the static electric field overlap spatially. We leverage the vibrational Stark effect in the polymer poly(methyl methacrylate) for calibrating the local electric field strength. In the relevant case of membrane protein ba

SUBMITTER: Temperini ME 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11328210 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature