Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) is a form of Scanning Probe Microscopy (SPM) used to explore the properties of surfaces with a proximal probe. The unique abilities of AFM to image and manipulate nanoscale objects makes it ideal for investigating biological samples. By functionalizing the AFM probe and scanning surface with short fragments of single- stranded DNA (ssDNA), we have explored the sequence-dependent binding kinetics of DNA, lending itself to applications in biomolecule sequencing and biochemical imaging.
Summer 2013
The XENON Dark Matter Project uses a two-phase time projection chamber (TPC) with a liquid xenon target to detect weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs). WIMP events are categorized by ionization and scintillation signals. The point of interaction of the WIMP with the xenon nucleus can be reconstructed in three dimensions with millimeter precision, when an appropriate fiducial volume cut is made. The electric field inside the TPC must be well understood in order to select the region where the electric field is adequately uniform and to reconstruct the interaction vertex with the desired resolution. In preparation for the final phase of the XENON experiments, the electric field and electron collection efficiency for the Demonstrator TPC and larger TPCs are studied and analyzed in this paper.
Summer 2012
Julia Ziac 