Weighing nanoparticles in solution at the attogram scale
Abstract
Naturally occurring and engineered nanoparticles (e.g., exosomes, viruses, protein aggregates, and self-assembled nanostructures) have size- and concentration-dependent functionality, yet existing characterization methods in solution are limited for diameters below ∼50 nm. In this study, we developed a nanomechanical resonator that can directly measure the mass of individual nanoparticles down to 10 nm with single-attogram (10-18 g) precision, enabling access to previously difficult-to-characterize natural and synthetic nanoparticles.
- Publication:
-
Proceedings of the National Academy of Science
- Pub Date:
- January 2014
- DOI:
- 10.1073/pnas.1318602111
- Bibcode:
- 2014PNAS..111.1310O