High Resolution AFM Probes
Typical spike radius
1nm
Spike height
100-200nm
Total AFM tip height
12-18µm
AFM probe material
n-type silicon
AFM probe bulk resistivity
0.01-0.025 Ohm·cm
AFM probe coating*
Gold
*The spike is not coated!
Hi’Res-C AFM probes have a diamond-like spike on the apex of the silicon AFM tip. The sharpness of the spike determines the resolution. The high-resolution AFM probes are recommended for scanning small areas below 250nm at 512 sampling points. Lateral resolution below 1nm is attainable.
1 AFM Cantilever Series
| AFM Cantilever | Resonance Frequency, kHz | Force Constant, N/m | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| min | typical | max | min | typical | max | |
| 14 series | 110 | 160 | 220 | 1.8 | 5.0 | 13 |
| 15 series | 265 | 325 | 410 | 20 | 40 | 80 |
| 18 series | 60 | 75 | 90 | 1.2 | 2.8 | 5.5 |
| 19 series | 25 | 65 | 120 | 0.05 | 0.5 | 2.3 |
Application
AFM has become the tool of choice for non-destructive surface measurements with molecular and sub-molecular resolution. However, the resolution and accuracy of the technique is limited by the size and shape of the AFM tip. In order to increase resolution, it is necessary to decrease both the AFM tip size and the AFM tip-sample interaction force
The development of the line of Hi’Res-C AFM probes has overcome these obstacles and made higher resolution, sub-nanometer imaging possible. The Hi’Res AFM probes allow for more accurate measurement of extremely narrow features such as pores, trenches, and sharp edges, along with accurate measurement of sub-nanometer surface roughness.
In addition, these AFM probes are also suitable for imaging soft, fragile and near-liquid samples as the AFM tip-sample attraction force is significantly reduced due to the unsurpassed sub-nanometer AFM tip radius.
Routine height images of carbosilane dendrimers (9th generation) in a dense film obtained using Bruker Multimode Nanoscope IIIa AFM. Scan size 150nm. Diameter of dendrimer molecules is 9nm. Images courtesy of S.S. Sheiko (University of North Caroline at Chapel Hill) and D.A. Ivanov (Free University of Brussels). Dendrimers courtesy of A. M. Muzafarov (ISPM RAS, Moscow.)
Hi'Res-C AFM probes suffer less contamination than silicon SPM probes and allow obtaining many high-resolution scans when proper care is taken during use. Due to the small AFM tip curvature radius, the AFM tip-sample attraction force is minimized.
The advantages of the Hi'Res-C AFM probes are noticeable when scanning smaller areas (<250nm) and flat samples. On larger images, the resolution is similar to that of general purpose AFM probes. The Hi'Res-C AFM probes are not suitable for corrugated samples.
Videos
