Thomas T. Perkins, JILA

Watching Individual Proteins Unfold and Refold Using 1-µs Resolution Force Spectroscopy

Protein folding occurs as a set of transitions between structural states within an energy landscape. An oversimplified view of the folding process emerges when transiently populated states are undetected because of limited instrumental resolution. To achieve state-of-the-art performance, we integrated several recent technical advances that improve the precision, stability, and accuracy of AFM-based single molecule force spectroscopy.

There is no physics colloquium scheduled for this week due to Thanksgiving.

Peter W. Milonni, Theoretical Division, Los Alamos National Lab and Dept. of Physics & Astronomy, Univ. of Rochester

Zero-Point Energy: Still Interesting (and Mysterious) After All These Years

Following a brief review of how zero-point energy first appeared in quantum theory, and how the concept has come to be accepted over the years, I will describe some of the evidence for the physical reality of zero-point energy and zero-point fluctuations, especially in the context of quantum electrodynamics and quantum optics. I will also address some questions surrounding the existence of zero-point energy.

There is no colloquium scheduled this week.