The ability to observe components of composite materials at the nanometer scale is a highly sought-after goal due to the high importance of the interaction between the polymer matrix and the reinforcing agent on the material properties.  Because of the intensive sample preparation and lack of large area coverage in electron microscopy, a sub-diffraction limit optical imaging technique would be of high value.  One such method is called photoactivation localization microscopy (PALM), which was developed by several groups within the last decade for use in biological systems.[1-3]  PALM relies on the ability to activate a small number of molecules into a fluorescent state, which when read out are sufficiently separated so as to allow their positions to be determined by a centroiding algorithm.[4]  By conducting several activation-readout cycles, a full picture of the sample can be observed containing detail at the sub-50 nm level.  Through the use of F�rster resonance energy transfer (FRET) where one molecule is tethered to the reinforcing agent and one molecule is located in the polymer matrix, a detailed look at the interface of the material should be possible.  This work will explore the use of the combination of FRET and PALM on cellulose nanofiber composites and address issues of dye characteristics and synthesis in such systems. [1]        E. Betzig, G. H. Patterson, R. Sougrat, O. W. Lindwasser, S. Olenych, J. S. Bonifacino, M. W. Davidson, J. Lippincott-Schwartz, H. F. Hess, Science 2006 , 313, 1642-1645.[2]        S. T. Hess, T. P. K. Girirajan, M. D. Mason, Biophys. J. 2006 , 91, 4258-4272.[3]        M. J. Rust, M. Bates, X. Zhuang, Nat. Methods 2006 , 3, 793-795.[4]        R. E. Thompson, D. R. Larson, W. W. Webb, Biophys. J. 2002 , 82, 2775-2783.

Progress towards the imaging of cellulose nanofiber composite interfaces by super-resolution microscopy

244th National Meeting (2012)

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