Single-fluorophore diffusion in a lipid membrane over a subwavelength aperture.
We use submicrometer apertures milled in an aluminium film to study the diffusion dynamics of beta-Bodipy-FL-C(5)-HPC (Bodipy-PC) fluorophores in a lipid dioleoylphosphatidylcholine (DOPC) multilayer. The observation volume is limited by the aperture diameter, well below the optical wavelength. This spatial resolution improvement comes together with an enhancement of the detected fluorescence per molecule as compared to an open sample, with a significant increase up to 3.5 times.
Wenger
Jérôme
J
Institut Fresnel, Université Paul Cézanne Aix-Marseille III, CNRS UMR 6133, Domaine Universitaire de Saint Jérôme, 13397 Marseille, Cedex 20, France.
Rigneault
Hervé
H
Dintinger
José
J
Marguet
Didier
D
Lenne
Pierre-François
PF