Microwaves Are Everywhere: “SMM: Nano-Microwaves”

If the Twentieth Century boasted of the Space Age and the Computer Age, the Twenty-First Century is certainly starting off with the Age of Biology, or at least Biochemistry. The enormous impact of CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats), LAMP (loop-mediated isothermal amplification), cryo-EM (electron microscopy), and many other nano-techniques in the biosciences is transforming the world in so many ways, not the least of which are the diagnostic tests and vaccines that are helping our global pandemic. Microwaves are huge compared to the likes of optical wavelengths and, at least for the world of bio-spectroscopy, being able to perform and take advantage of standard microwave materials measurements at a cellular (micron) and even molecular (nanometer) scale has been a major impediment to applications for this well-developed electronics technology and instrumentation. In the early part of the 21
^st
Century, the fields of AFM (atomic force microscopy) and SMM (scanning microwave microscopy) came together and spun off a handful of commercial applications and instruments stimulated by some very clever engineering and bio researchers and partnerships. In this, our fourth tutorial article in our continuing series on the ubiquitous presence and applications of microwaves, we take a look at the origins, instruments, biological applications, and goals for “nano-microwaves” the use of microwaves at nanometer scales.