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An atomic force microscope tip designed to measure time-varying nanomechanical forces

Nature Nanotechnology volume 2, pages 507–514 (2007)Cite this article

Abstract

Tapping-mode atomic force microscopy (AFM), in which the vibrating tip periodically approaches, interacts and retracts from the sample surface, is the most common AFM imaging method. The tip experiences attractive and repulsive forces that depend on the chemical and mechanical properties of the sample, yet conventional AFM tips are limited in their ability to resolve these time-varying forces. We have created a specially designed cantilever tip that allows these interaction forces to be measured with good (sub-microsecond) temporal resolution and material properties to be determined and mapped in detail with nanoscale spatial resolution. Mechanical measurements based on these force waveforms are provided at a rate of 4 kHz. The forces and contact areas encountered in these measurements are orders of magnitude smaller than conventional indentation and AFM-based indentation techniques that typically provide data rates around 1 Hz. We use this tool to quantify and map nanomechanical changes in a binary polymer blend in the vicinity of its glass transition.

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Figure 1: Schematic of the tapping-mode atomic force microscope and the experimental set up.
Figure 2: Design of the torsional harmonic cantilever with an off-axis tip.
Figure 3: Frequency response and vibration spectra of a torsional harmonic cantilever.
Figure 4: Reconstructing the tip–sample force waveform.
Figure 5: Changes in the mechanical properties of a polymer blend near the glass transition.
Figure 6: Indentation forces as a function of temperature in a polymer blend.

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Acknowledgements

We thank N. Yerina of Veeco Instruments for preparing the polymer samples. The authors acknowledge support from the Center for Probing the Nanoscale (CPN), and NSF NSEC, NSF Grant No. PHY-0425897. O. Sahin acknowledges support from the Rowland Junior Fellows Program.

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Author notes

  1. Sergei Magonov

    Present address: Present address: Agilent Technologies, 4330 W. Chandler Boulevard, Chandler, Arizona 85226, USA,

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Rowland Institute at Harvard, Cambridge, 02142, Massachusetts, USA

    Ozgur Sahin

  2. Veeco Instruments, Santa Barbara, California, 93117, USA

    Sergei Magonov & Chanmin Su

  3. E. L. Ginzton Laboratory, Stanford University, Stanford, California, 94305, USA

    Calvin F. Quate & Olav Solgaard

Authors
  1. Ozgur Sahin
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  2. Sergei Magonov
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ozgur Sahin.

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A patent application has been filed by Stanford University.

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Sahin, O., Magonov, S., Su, C. et al. An atomic force microscope tip designed to measure time-varying nanomechanical forces. Nature Nanotech 2, 507–514 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2007.226

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