NMR Spectroscopy with cantilevers

• Research unit: INNOSUISSE
• Project number: 6988.1;5 KTS-NM

Short description (English)

NMR Spectroscopy with cantilevers

Abstract (English)

Magnetic resonance spectroscopy, in particular NMR, as well as cantilever-based imaging techniques (AFM, STM) are powerful analytical methods. In both fields, Swiss science has made leading contributions to the development. In the last decade, magnetic resonance force microscopy (MRFM) has been proposed and the proof of principles, as well as preliminary applications, have been demonstrated in the US and the EU. Much of the MRFM research focuses on obtaining single-spin sensitivity. Here we propose a different approach which focuses on a spatial resolution in the micrometer or nanometer range. In these small volumes (¿voxels¿), advanced NMR spectroscopy shall be performed. The combination of spectroscopic techniques on ensemble of spins ¿ which are well known to allow for an atomic resolution structural and dynamic description ¿ with a spatial resolution in the order of a micrometer will allow the investigation of advanced materials and biomolecules (e.g. a monolayer of lipids or protein) in full local details. This will overcome the sensitivity limit of conventional NMR and the resolution limit of single-spin approaches. In a separate part of the proposal, we propose to build an MRFM probe with integrated calibration tools. These internal calibration tools which will allow to operate a force microscope under well-defined conditions.