Cooperative control of a DNA origami force sensor.

Biomolecular systems are dependent on a complex interplay of forces. Modern force spectroscopy techniques provide means of interrogating these forces, but they are not optimized for studies in constrained environments as they require attachment to micron-scale probes such as beads or cantilevers. Nanomechanical devices are a promising alternative, but this requires versatile designs that can be tuned to respond to a wide range of forces.

Cooperative control of a DNA origami force sensor.

Most biomolecular systems are dependent on a complex interplay of forces. Modern force spectroscopy techniques provide means of interrogating these forces. These techniques, however, are not optimized for studies in constrained or crowded environments as they typically require micron-scale beads in the case of magnetic or optical tweezers, or direct attachment to a cantilever in the case of atomic force microscopy.