TEMSE, Belgium, Aug. 15, 2006 — Infinitesima Ltd. said its VideoAFM, part of its high-speed atomic force microscope line, is the first ATM capable of delivering real-time images at video frame rates, 1000 times faster than conventional AFMs. It allows users to visualize and interact with chemical or biological processes at the molecular level, in real time, and supplies up to 25 images per second with full resolution.
The VideoAFM enables video-rate imaging of biomolecules in liquid. It has been used to produce real-time images of collagen in water at 15 f/s — each image frame was acquired in less than 35 milliseconds, allowing real-time scanning of the collagen surface.
The images of collagen were produced with the assistance of Laurent Bozec at the London Centre for Nanotechnology. He said, “Collagen is an essential substance, as it accounts for more than a quarter of the proteins in the human body. Being able to observe real-time processes at the nanometer scale in the physiological conditions of a liquid environment is an important step towards our understanding of how collagen forms the bones and ligaments in our bodies.”
The instrument also enables researchers to operate an atomic force microscope much like an optical microscope, but at nanometer resolution, Infinitesima said. It works in conjunction with existing AFMs without affecting the functionality of the microscope and allows large surface areas to be explored for a more detailed investigation.
