Analytical description of the motion of an acoustic-driven atomic force microscope cantilever in liquid

In this letter the authors present an analytical description that enables determining the motion of an acoustic-driven atomic force microscope cantilever in liquid. The authors show that for low quality factors the effective driving force that acts on the deflection motion depends on the damping. The authors derived equations that accurately give the amplitude and phase of the cantilever deflection and the authors also give the expressions of the damping and stiffness of the interaction. (c) 2007 American Institute of Physics.