期刊
ULTRAMICROSCOPY
卷 109, 期 8, 页码 1061-1065出版社
ELSEVIER
DOI: 10.1016/j.ultramic.2009.03.019
关键词
AFM; Grating; Contaminant; Colloidal probe; Clean
类别
Contamination control of atomic force microscope (AFM) tips (including standard but supersharp imaging tips and particle/colloidal probes) is very important for reliable AFM imaging and surface/interface force measurements. Traditional cleaning methods such as plasma, UV-ozone and solvent treatments have their shortcomings. Here, we demonstrate that calibration gratings with supersharp spikes can be employed to scrub away contaminants accumulated on a colloidal sphere probe by scanning the probe against the spikes at high load at constant-force mode. The present method is superior to traditional cleaning methods in several aspects. First, accumulated lump-like organic/inorganic material can be removed; second, removal is non-destructive and highly efficient based on a targeted removal strategy; third, removal and probe shape/morphology study can be completed in a single step (we report, to our best knowledge, the first evidence of the wear of the colloidal sphere during force measurements); and fourth, both colloidal/particle probes and standard but supersharp AFM imaging tips can be treated. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
作者
我是这篇论文的作者
点击您的名字以认领此论文并将其添加到您的个人资料中。
推荐
暂无数据