For imaging modalities that require larger open viewing areas, such as some materials science applications or tomography, QUANTIFOIL® Holey Carbon Film supports with square holes can be an excellent choice. The relatively narrow bars mean that this geometry offers the largest open viewing area of any QUANTIFOIL®.
For samples that may not be stable in unsupported ice, including fibrils or other fragile macromolecular complexes, an thin additional layer of carbon may be added to provide support across the holes.
Citations
Square holes have been used in a range of applications where the large imaging area and low volume of Carbon support is helpful. These include:
Cryo-electron tomography, for example Zhang et al. Molecular organization of the early stages of nucleosome phase separation visualized by cryo-electron tomography. Molecular Cell 82: 3000-3014 (2022)
Imaging extracellular vesicles and other larger cellular features, for example, de Oliveira et al. Stromal cells support the survival of human primary chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) cells through Lyn-driven extracellular vesicles. Front Med (Lausanne) 9: 1059028 (2023)
Fibrils and other larger objects, for example Newman et al. Splenic Capture and In Vivo Intracellular Biodegradation of Biological-Grade Graphene Oxide Sheets. ACS Nano 14: 10168-10186 (2020)
