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A general high fidelity approach based on electron beam writing is described to pattern the functional properties of protein-coated surfaces at length scales ranging from tens of nanometres to millimeters. There are excellent prospects for improving patterning resolution with a better understanding of the patterning conditions and the biophysical details of matrix protein inactivation.

We use a recently developed scanning probe technique to image with high spatial resolution the injection and extraction of charge around individual surface-modified aluminum oxide nanoparticles embedded in a low-density polyethylene (LDPE) matrix. We find that the experimental results are consistent with a simple band structure model where localized electronic states are available in the band gap (trap states) in the vicinity of the nanoparticles. This work offers experimental support to a previously proposed mechanism for enhanced insulating properties of nanocomposite LDPE and provides a powerful experimental tool to further investigate such properties.

Controlling the spatial organization of biomolecules on solid supports with high resolution is important for a wide range of scientific and technological problems. Here we report a study of electron beam lithography (EBL) patterning of a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) of the amide-containing poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) thiol CH(3)O(CH(2)CH(2)O)(17)NHCO(CH(2))(2)SH on Au and demonstrate the patterning of biomolecular features with dimensions approaching 40 nm. The electron dose dependence of feature size and pattern resolution is studied in detail by atomic force microscopy (AFM), which reveals two distinct patterning mechanisms. At low doses, the pattern formation occurs by SAM ablation in a self-developing process where the feature size is directly dose-dependent. At higher doses, electron beam-induced deposition of material, so-called contamination writing, is seen in the ablated areas of the SAM. The balance between these two mechanisms is shown to depend on the geometry of the pattern. The patterned SAMs were backfilled with fluorescent 40-nm spheres coated with NeutrAvidin. These protein-coated spheres adhered to exposed areas in the SAM with high selectivity. This direct writing approach for patterning bioactive surfaces is a fast and efficient way to produce patterns with a resolution approaching that of single proteins.

Here, we report a study of the morphology and growth dynamics of a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) of the amide containing poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) thiol (CH3O(CH2CH2O)17NHCO(CH2)2SH) on atomically flat Au(111) surfaces. SAM growth from a 20 muM ethanolic solution reveals island growth through three distinct steps: island nucleation, island growth, and coalescence. The coalescence-step, filling voids in the SAM, is by far slowest. The fine structure study reveals dendritic island formation, an observation which can be explained by attractive intermolecular interactions and surface diffusion-limited aggregation. We have also observed a change in the island height, which peaks during the island growth phase. This height change can be associated with a molecular conformational transition.