title: Energy-filtered transmission electron microscopy of biological samples on highly transparent carbon nanomembranes.
abstract: Ultrathin carbon nanomembranes (CNM) comprising crosslinked biphenyl precursors have been tested as support films for energy-filtered transmission electron microscopy (EFTEM) of biological specimens. Due to their high transparency CNM are ideal substrates for electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) and electron spectroscopic imaging (ESI) of stained and unstained biological samples. Virtually background-free elemental maps of tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) and ferritin have been obtained from samples supported by ∼1nm thin CNM. Furthermore, we have tested conductive carbon nanomembranes (cCNM) comprising nanocrystalline graphene, obtained by thermal treatment of CNM, as supports for cryoEM of ice-embedded biological samples. We imaged ice-embedded TMV on cCNM and compared the results with images of ice-embedded TMV on conventional carbon film (CC), thus analyzing the gain in contrast for TMV on cCNM in a quantitative manner. In addition we have developed a method for the preparation of vitrified specimens, suspended over the holes of a conventional holey carbon film, while backed by ultrathin cCNM.
authors.affiliation: Max-Planck-Institute of Biophysics, Department of Structural Biology, Max-von-Laue-Straße 3, D-60439 Frankfurt, Germany. daniel.rhinow@biophys.mpg.de
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rhinow
authors.forename: Matthias
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Büenfeld
authors.forename: Nils-Eike
authors.initials: NE
authors.lastname: Weber
authors.forename: André
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Beyer
authors.forename: Armin
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gölzhäuser
authors.forename: Werner
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Kühlbrandt
authors.forename: Norbert
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hampp
authors.forename: Andrey
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Turchanin
mesh_terms: D002244:Carbon / Q000737:chemistry*; D005293:Ferritins / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D046032:Microscopy, Energy-Filtering Transmission Electron / Q000379:methods*; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry*; D014027:Tobacco Mosaic Virus / Q000648:ultrastructure*
chemical_list: D002244:Carbon; D005293:Ferritins