  We present the design, fabrication and experimental validation of a novel
device that exploits the amplification of displacement and attenuation of
structural stiffness in the post-buckling deformation of slender columns to
obtain pico-Newton force and nanometer displacement resolution even under an
optical microscope. The extremely small size, purely mechanical sensing scheme
and vacuum compatibility of the instrument makes it compatible with existing
visualization tools of nanotechnology. The instrument has a wide variety of
potential applications ranging from electro-mechanical characterization of one
dimensional solids to single biological cells.
