Carol Wright-smith | Jan 21, 2001 | 8 min read
Digital Instrument's BioScope Anyone who has ever taken the time to critically examine a walnut knows that a two-dimensional photograph fails in many respects to truly convey the unique features--the nicks, crannies, valleys, and grooves--of the walnut shell. Researchers use atomic force microscopy (AFM) to literally map the surface of inert and biological samples to obtain three-dimensional images. Whereas technological developments in microscopy1,2 have facilitated the detailed characterizatio