Atomic force microscopy: the atomic force microscope measures the forces between the tip of a cantilevered probe and the specimen as the probe is scanned over the surface in a raster pattern.(Cover Story)

Advanced Materials & Processes,  February, 2004  by West, Paul

• E-mail
• Print
• Link

The atomic force microscope evolved from the scanning tunneling microscope (STM). Instead of electron conduction, it relies on the mechanical forces between the probe tip and the surface, and therefore does not require a conducting tip or sample. Although the most useful applications of the STM require an ultra-high vacuum ambient, the atomic force microscope (AFM) can acquire excellent images in air or even under a liquid.

[FIGURE 1 OMITTED] Over the last two decades, AFMs have evolved from a complex expert-only instrument, to an intuitive PC-driven tabletop R&D tool (Fig. ...

Read the rest of this article with a Free Trial at HighBeam Research.