3D Electron Printing in Genetically Engineered Spider Silk Proteins at ∼ 50 nm Resolution

We report all-electron-based true 3d bionanofabrication, termed “3d electron printing”, to precisely produce the biomimetic, hierarchical and heterogeneous nanostructures from biologically functional genetically engineered spider silk proteins as the printing medium. The fabrication process uses only water to remove the unexposed/uncrosslinked area and eliminates the need to use and dispose of noxious chemicals. This biofriendly method offers a promising route toward fabrication of 3d functional nanodevices and nanointerfaces with unprecedented precision at ~ 50 nm resolution.