Carbon nanoelectrodes for single-cell probing

Carbon nanoelectrodes with tip diameters ranging from tens to hundreds of nanometers are fabricated by pyrolitic deposition of carbon films along the entire inner surfaces of pulled-glass pipettes. The pulled end of each glass pipette is then etched to expose a desired length (typically, a few micrometers) of carbon pipe. The carbon film provides an electrically conductive path from the nanoscopic carbon tip to the distal, macroscopic end of the pipette, bridging between the nanoscale tip and the macroscale handle, without a need for assembly. We used our nanoelectrodes to penetrate into individual cells and cell nuclei and measured the variations in the electrode impedance upon cell and nucleus penetration as well as the electrode impedance as a function of cell penetration depth. Theoretical predictions based on a simple circuit model were in good agreement with experimental data.