Zero Mode Waveguides for Single-Molecule Spectroscopy on Lipid Membranes

Zero mode waveguides (ZMWs), subwavelength optical nanostructures with dimensions ranging from 50 to 200 nm, have been used to study systems involving ligand-receptor interactions. We show that under proper conditions, lipid membranes will invaginate into the nanostructures, which confine optical excitation to subattoliter volumes. Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) was used to characterize the diffusion of fluorescently tagged lipids …