TY - GEN

T1 - Bidirectional scanning force microscopy probes with co-resonant sensitivity enhancement

AU - Reiche, Christopher F.

AU - Korner, Julia

AU - Buchner, Bernd

AU - Muhl, Thomas

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2015 IEEE.

PY - 2015

Y1 - 2015

N2 - In dynamic scanning force microscopy (dSFM) an oscillating micromechanical cantilever equipped with an interaction tip is used to provide sub-nanometer spatial resolution data on force gradient related properties of the tip-sample interaction. Our bidirectional dSFM probes provide lateral as well as perpendicular force gradient sensitivity with in-situ-switching capability between the operation directions by employing a special geometry and the first two flexural modes of the cantilever. These probes rely only on basic vertical excitation and detection schemes and are therefore compatible with standard dSFM equipment. A way to increase the sensitivity of the lateral mode is given by a co-resonant detection concept. In the framework of this concept the ease of detection of a micromechanical oscillator, in our case a microstructured cantilever, is combined with the high force gradient sensitivity of a nanomechanical low-stiffness and low-mass carbon nanotube oscillator. The resonance frequency of the nanotube is adjusted via mass deposition to be close to the lateral sensitivity resonance frequency of the cantilever. This ensures that the oscillatory state of the coupled cantilevernanotube system has an increased sensitivity to force gradients but still retains the easy detection of the oscillation of the cantilever. The amplified sensitivity is experimentally verified by comparing data on magnetic measurements acquired with such a co-resonant sensor with calculations for a standard bidirectional sensor.

AB - In dynamic scanning force microscopy (dSFM) an oscillating micromechanical cantilever equipped with an interaction tip is used to provide sub-nanometer spatial resolution data on force gradient related properties of the tip-sample interaction. Our bidirectional dSFM probes provide lateral as well as perpendicular force gradient sensitivity with in-situ-switching capability between the operation directions by employing a special geometry and the first two flexural modes of the cantilever. These probes rely only on basic vertical excitation and detection schemes and are therefore compatible with standard dSFM equipment. A way to increase the sensitivity of the lateral mode is given by a co-resonant detection concept. In the framework of this concept the ease of detection of a micromechanical oscillator, in our case a microstructured cantilever, is combined with the high force gradient sensitivity of a nanomechanical low-stiffness and low-mass carbon nanotube oscillator. The resonance frequency of the nanotube is adjusted via mass deposition to be close to the lateral sensitivity resonance frequency of the cantilever. This ensures that the oscillatory state of the coupled cantilevernanotube system has an increased sensitivity to force gradients but still retains the easy detection of the oscillation of the cantilever. The amplified sensitivity is experimentally verified by comparing data on magnetic measurements acquired with such a co-resonant sensor with calculations for a standard bidirectional sensor.

KW - Carbon Nanotubes

KW - Micro-to-nano-scale bridging

KW - NEMS

KW - Scanning Force Microscopy Probes

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84964378328&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1109/NANO.2015.7388849

DO - 10.1109/NANO.2015.7388849

M3 - Conference contribution

AN - SCOPUS:84964378328

T3 - IEEE-NANO 2015 - 15th International Conference on Nanotechnology

SP - 1222

EP - 1225

BT - IEEE-NANO 2015 - 15th International Conference on Nanotechnology

PB - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.

T2 - 15th IEEE International Conference on Nanotechnology, IEEE-NANO 2015

Y2 - 27 July 2015 through 30 July 2015

ER -