Submolecular resolution of single macromolecules with atomic force microscopy

Abstract

The intrinsically high signal-to-noise ratio of atomic force microscopy (AFM) permits structural determination of individual macromolecules to, at times, subnanometer resolution directly from unprocessed images, avoiding the conditions and possible consequences of averaging over an ensemble of molecules. In this article, we will review some of the most recent achievements in imaging single macromolecules with AFM.