Seale Kevin, Janetopoulos Chris, Wikswo John
Department of Biomedical Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee 37235-1807, USA.
ACS Nano. 2009 Mar 24;3(3):493-7. doi: 10.1021/nn900188t.
A research-grade optical microscope is capable of resolving fine structures in two-dimensional images. However, three-dimensional resolution, or the ability of the microscope to distinguish between objects lying above or below the focal plane from in-focus objects, is not nearly as good as in-plane resolution. In this issue of ACS Nano, McMahon et al. report the use of mirrored pyramidal wells with a conventional microscope for rapid, 3D localization and tracking of nanoparticles. Mirrors have been used in microscopy before, but recent work with MPWs is unique because it enables the rapid determination of the x-, y-, and z-position of freely diffusing nanoparticles and cellular nanostructures with unprecedented speed and spatial accuracy. As inexpensive tools for 3D visualization, mirrored pyramidal wells may prove to be invaluable aids in nanotechnology and engineering of nanomaterials.
研究级光学显微镜能够分辨二维图像中的精细结构。然而，三维分辨率，即显微镜区分焦平面上方或下方物体与焦平面内物体的能力，远不如平面分辨率。在本期《美国化学会纳米》杂志中，麦克马洪等人报告了将镜面金字塔阱与传统显微镜结合使用，用于对纳米颗粒进行快速三维定位和跟踪。此前显微镜中也曾使用过镜子，但最近对镜面金字塔阱的研究独具特色，因为它能够以前所未有的速度和空间精度快速确定自由扩散的纳米颗粒和细胞纳米结构的x、y和z位置。作为用于三维可视化的廉价工具，镜面金字塔阱可能会被证明是纳米技术和纳米材料工程中非常有价值的辅助工具。
