title: Measurements of thickness dispersion in biolayers by scanning force microscopy and comparison with spectroscopic ellipsometry analysis.
abstract: Measuring the thickness of biological films remains a difficult task when using differential measurements by atomic force microscopy (AFM). The use of microstructured substrates combined with a selective adsorption constitutes an alternative to tribological measurements. The statistical thickness analysis of biological layers, especially via the dispersion measurements, can provide a way to quantify the molecular orientation. AFM thicknesses were then compared with those obtained optically by spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) and surface plasmon resonance enhanced ellipsometry (SPREE). The biolayers could then be modeled using a vertical gradient of optical index, which reflects height dispersions. Thiol-modified DNA strands of various lengths account for a good biological model for the study of the strand motion in air and in liquid.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Physique Université de Bourgogne, UMR CNRS 5027, F-21011 Dijon, France.
authors.forename: Guillaume
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Legay
authors.forename: Laurent
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Markey
authors.forename: Rita
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Meunier-Prest
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Finot
mesh_terms: D004247:DNA / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force / Q000379:methods*; D020349:Surface Plasmon Resonance / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D004247:DNA