Characterization of vaccinia virus particles using microscale silicon cantilever resonators and atomic force microscopy

Luke Johnson, Department of Physics, Luther College; Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University
Amit Kumar Gupta, Birck Nanotechnology Center, Bindley Bioscience Center, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University
Azam Ghafoor, Birck Nanotechnology Center, Bindley Bioscience Center, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University
Demir Akin, Birck Nanotechnology Center, Bindley Bioscience Center, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University
Rashid Bashir, Birck Nanotechnology Center, Bindley Bioscience Center, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University

Abstract

Rapid means of characterizing and detecting virus particles are very important for a wide variety of applications. We have used vaccinia virus, a member of the Poxviridae virus family and the basis of the smallpox vaccine, as the test case and characterized these particles using atomic force microscopy and micron-scale cantilever beams, with the long-term goal of developing devices for the direct rapid detection of air-borne virus particles. The cantilever beams, driven by thermal noise and a PZT piezoelectric ceramic, served as resonating sensors to measure the mass of these virus particles. Two different size cantilevers were used, with dimensions of 21