Optical and Mechanical Investigations of Nanostructures for Biomolecular Detection

Since Luigi Galvani (1737–1798) began his studies, physics and biology have inter- acted and many tools from physics have been used in the biological sciences. Today the availability of new microscopic techniques has pushed the boundaries from the μm to the (sub-) nm level. These possibilities stimulate to find ever more creative ways of using physics, material science, and biology combined together. In particular, the development of techniques capable of measuring the chemical and mechanical state of biological samples, in vivo and with attention to molecular dynamics localized at surfaces is of great interest. An approach trying to combine these aspects will be reviewed here, based on the following techniques: (a) Optical detection based on evanescent wave spectroscopy, (b) femtosecond laser pulses used to excite thermal and mechanical transients in na- noengineered materials, (c) Non-Contact Atomic Force Microscopy (NC-AFM) and force spectroscopy.