Quantitative measurement of tip-sample interactions in amplitude modulation atomic force microscopy

The author introduces an algorithm for the reconstruction of the tip-sample interactions in amplitude modulation atomic force microscopy (tapping mode). The method is based on the recording of amplitude and phase versus distance curves and allows the reconstruction of tip-sample force and energy dissipation as a function of the actual tip-sample distance. The proposed algorithm is verified by a numerical simulation and applied to a silicon sample in ambient conditions. (c) 2006 American Institute of Physics.