Three-dimensional Cryogenic Electron Microscopy Imaging of Two-dimensional Polymer Crystals

ORAL

Abstract

We introduce a novel composite holey gold support that prevents cryo-crinkling and reduces beam-induced motion of two-dimensional specimens. The experiments are conducted on self-assembled crystalline polypeptoid nanosheets. Low-dose cryogenic electron microscopy micrographs are obtained from frozen hydrated crystalline nanosheets on the novel ultra-flat support at different tilting angles. A hybrid processing of crystallographic, tomography and single particle methods, developed for cryo-electron microscopy of biological macromolecules, is used to resolve the structure of crystals at atomic level. Our approach is robust and enable direct visualization of the spatial arrangement of atoms in backbones and side chains in the three-dimensional reconstructed crystalline polypeptoid nanosheet.

**Funding for this work was provided by the Soft Matter Electron Microscopy Program (KC11BN), supported by the Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Science, US Department of Energy, under Contract DE-AC02-05CH11231.

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Presenters

  • Xi Jiang

    • Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
    • Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Authors

  • Xi Jiang

    • Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
    • Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

  • Sunting Xuan

    • Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

  • Nan Li

    • Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

  • David Prendergast

    • Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
    • Lawrence Berkeley National Lab

  • Ronald Zuckermann

    • Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

  • Nitash Balsara

    • University of California, Berkeley
    • Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of California, Berkeley
    • College of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley

  • Kenneth Downing

    • Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory