US-Germany Cooperative Research: Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) of Precambrian Microfossils - A New Paleontologic Technique in the Search for the Earth's Earliest Fossils

University Of California-Los Angeles, Los Angeles CA

Investigators

Abstract

0233259 Schopf This award supports William Schopf from the University of California-Los Angeles in a collaboration with Wolfgang Heckl of the Center for Nanoscience at the University of Munich, Germany. The project will focus on the development of a new paleontological technique that will be useful in identification of Precambrian cellular microfossils and their remains. Through the use of atomic force microscopy (AFM), the researchers intend to investigate the morphology of microfossils previously located and identified by older methods of microscopy, in order to learn about the nanostructure of the fossil remains. The principal investigator on the German side is a pioneer in the application of AFM to biological and geobiological problems and will contribute unique expertise to the research team. Results from this work will have a definite impact on the current debate over the nature of pre-Cambrian fossils and will also be applicable to the study of organic matter from other plants and so have a broader impact.