Scanning Ion‐Conductance Microscopy

Abstract

Scanning ion‐conductance microscopy (SICM) is a scanning probe technique employing a glass nanopipette to reconstruct topographical information of a sample immersed in an electrolyte solution. The feedback mechanism relies on the measurement of the ion current flowing through a nanoscale pore at the tip of the nanopipette whose amplitude depends on the nanopipette‐sample separation. We present the principle of functioning of the various scanning modalities and highlight the key applications for each of them. The noncontact nature of the SICM feedback together with the possibility to operate in physiological buffers makes it particularly suitable for application in cell biology and particularly for live‐cell imaging. Since its inception in 1989, SICM has been deployed for a variety of applications other than topographical mapping and we present the most creative recent applications in biosensing, nanosurgery, electrochemistry, 3D printing, and nanomechanical mapping.

The New Era of High-Throughput Nanoelectrochemistry

“…Korchev, Klenerman, and co-workers further refined the technique to allow topographical mapping of living cells immersed in culture media, broadening the applications of SICM to biology . SICM has been applied mainly in biological research, ,,,− as depicted in Figure , but it is increasingly finding applications in electrochemical and materials research, which further expands its range of applications. A recent book provides a collection of historical developments and recent advances in SICM, as does an authoritative review …”