Evaluation of replicas manufactured in a 3D-printed nanoimprint unit

• Manuel Caño-García,
• Morten A. Geday,
• Manuel Gil-Valverde,
• Xabier Quintana and
• José M. Otón

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1573–1581, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.149

• account the 2D nature of the topography, 2D fast Fourier transform was applied on to obtain the spatial frequency. The pitch value is obtained from the inverse distance between the zeroth order and the first order of the FFT (actually the script takes the distance between the two first orders and divides

• maximum value. It gives an approximate idea of the image scale and is used for certain general calculations within the code. Angles: The saw-tooth pattern is characterized by its pitch and angles. The blazing angle, αblazing, determines the slope of the sawtooth and ultimately the sample topography. The

• image processing. First described a decade ago [11], it is usually employed to detect objects in images, especially pedestrians. Here we propose to apply HOG to quantify the amount of superficial errors of a given topography. The underlying concept is relatively simple: In the 2D mesh of the sample

Correlative electrochemical strain and scanning electron microscopy for local characterization of the solid state electrolyte Li_1.3Al_0.3Ti_1.7(PO₄)₃

• Nino Schön,
• Deniz Cihan Gunduz,
• Shicheng Yu,
• Hermann Tempel,
• Roland Schierholz and
• Florian Hausen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1564–1572, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.148

• ]. Information about the behavior of the material as a solid state electrolyte cannot be derived based on SEM and EDX mappings alone, hence we performed ESM. Figure 2 shows correlative images of SEM and AFM topography as well as ESM on identical regions of LATP sintered at 1050 °C. The SEM image (Figure 2a

• two different areas indicated by the blue (1) and red (2) markings in Figure 2a. In the topography images illustrated in Figure 2b,d, minor amounts of residue originating from the polishing procedure are observed in the form of elevated particles. Apart from this, the AFM images reflect the same

• surface features as observed by SEM, providing evidence that both methods can be applied complementary. The same pores as those observed via SEM can be found in the AFM topography image and the topography reveals some preferential etching at the grain boundaries and interfaces. Differentiation between the

Optical near-field mapping of plasmonic nanostructures prepared by nanosphere lithography

• Gitanjali Kolhatkar,
• Alexandre Merlen,
• Jiawei Zhang,
• Chahinez Dab,
• Gregory Q. Wallace,
• François Lagugné-Labarthet and
• Andreas Ruediger

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1536–1543, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.144

• nm) and two different polarizations. After the processing of the optical images, the distribution of hot spots can be correlated with the topography of the structures, as indicated by the presence of brighter spots at the apexes of the nanostructures. This technique is validated by comparison of the

• origins, such as topography effects [11], tip defects [12], or interferometric effects [11]. Consequently, the resulting high far-field background signal tends to overcast the near-field contribution of the signal. To address these drawbacks, several methods to enhance the near-field contribution have

• with noticeably reduced oscillations is obtained (Figure 2d). This filtered image better displays the near-field contribution of the optical signal. It can be used to directly map the hot spots and to correlate their spatial positions to the topography of the investigated structures. Figure 2d shows

Electrostatically actuated encased cantilevers

• Benoit X. E. Desbiolles,
• Gabriela Furlan,
• Adam M. Schwartzberg,
• Paul D. Ashby and
• Dominik Ziegler

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1381–1389, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.130

• experimentally determined amplitude can be expressed as = 101 pm V−2|Udc − UCPD|Uac. A comparison with modeled results is given in section Modeling. We demonstrate imaging capability in air using electrostatic excitation in Figure 3c. A 3D rendering of the recorded topography shows copper grains evaporated onto

Interplay between pairing and correlations in spin-polarized bound states

• Szczepan Głodzik,
• Aksel Kobiałka,
• Anna Gorczyca-Goraj,
• Andrzej Ptok,
• Grzegorz Górski,
• Maciej M. Maśka and
• Tadeusz Domański

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1370–1380, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.129

• ][13][14]. In-gap states (appearing in pairs symmetrically around the Fermi level) can be nowadays controlled electrostatically or magnetically [12] whereas their topography, spatial extent and polarization can be precisely inspected by the state-of-art tunneling measurements [15][16]. It has been

Formation mechanisms of boron oxide films fabricated by large-area electron beam-induced deposition of trimethyl borate

• Aiden A. Martin and
• Philip J. Depond

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1282–1287, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.120

• . The surface topography of the resulting deposits was measured by a Keyence VK-X100 laser scanning confocal microscope [23] (LCSM, specified height measurement resolution of 5 nm and measurement repeatability of 0.02 μm) and analyzed using the VK Analyzer software package (version 3.3.0.0). The

Artifacts in time-resolved Kelvin probe force microscopy

• Sascha Sadewasser,
• Nicoleta Nicoara and
• Santiago D. Solares

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1272–1281, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.119

• that corresponds to the contact potential difference (CPD). The topography control (z feedback) was normally realized on the fundamental resonance of the cantilever. However, in some experiments the z feedback and the cantilever oscillation were switched off during the pulse sequences and the tip was

• retracted 50 nm. Control experiments with different tip retractions between 10 and 50 nm showed no dependence of the results on the tip retraction. To allow Kelvin control on the fundamental resonance frequency (by applying the Kelvin ac voltage at f0) the topography control was applied on the second

Heterostuctures of 4-(chloromethyl)phenyltrichlorosilane and 5,10,15,20-tetra(4-pyridyl)-21H,23H-porphine prepared on Si(111) using particle lithography: Nanoscale characterization of the main steps of nanopatterning

• Phillip C. Chambers and
• Jayne C. Garno

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1211–1219, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.112

• Figure 3a. The bright spots in Figure 3a are taller than the surrounding OTS matrix. There are about 35 CMPS nanodots visible in the 3 × 3 µm2 topography image in Figure 3a, which matches the surface density of OTS nanoholes. A ball-and-stick model of a CMPS molecule indicates a length of 0.75 nm in

• Figure 3b [38]. A close-up view of three nanodots are shown in zoom-in topography and phase images in Figures 3c and 3d. The heights and sizes of the nanodots are quite similar, without nonspecific attachment of contaminants in surrounding areas of the OTS resist film. There is a dark outline surrounding

• the nanodots that is apparent in the phase image (Figure 3d) which is attributable to differences in tip–surface response at the edges of the features versus the center areas of the nanostructures. The cursor profile in Figure 3e profiles the topography of two individual CMPS nanostructures that are

Electrostatic force spectroscopy revealing the degree of reduction of individual graphene oxide sheets

• Yue Shen,
• Ying Wang,
• Yuan Zhou,
• Chunxi Hai,
• Jun Hu and
• Yi Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1146–1155, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.106

• transparency injury in sample 2 caused by high temperature (450 °C) and oxidation in the atmosphere, no other differences amongst samples 1–5 were observed. In addition, the increased apparent height in the SPFM images compared with the height in the topography images (Figure 1d–n) indicates that the GO sheets

• information (blue arrows marked in Figure 1i,k), indicating the contributions from the polarization force (dielectric properties) and the van der Waals force (topography) between the tip and sample. As we can see in the Figure 1l,m,n, the apparent height of samples 1 and 5 are 19.3 nm (Figure 1n) and 6.9 nm

• of proportionality. The contrast between the phase shifts of probe imaging on mica and sample n can be expressed as: In EFM imaging, the lift mode is used. Topography data recorded during the main pass is used to keep the tip at a constant distance from the surface (lift scan height was 15 nm here

Imaging of viscoelastic soft matter with small indentation using higher eigenmodes in single-eigenmode amplitude-modulation atomic force microscopy

• Miead Nikfarjam,
• Enrique A. López-Guerra,
• Santiago D. Solares and
• Babak Eslami

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1116–1122, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.103

• [4], the first eigenmode of the cantilever is excited using the AM-AFM method and used for measuring topography, while a higher eigenmode (generally the second eigenmode) is simultaneously excited in “open loop” (with constant drive amplitude and frequency) to map the surface properties of the

• . Polystyrene thin-film topography images for AM-AFM using the fundamental eigenmode (a), AM-AFM using the second eigenmode (b), and bimodal AFM using the first two eigenmodes (c); (d) shows the scan line profiles, whereby the color code on the graph is based on the dashed lines in the images. The inset graph

• is the enlarged graph of a portion of the topography in order to show the differences in topography values among the three different experiments. f1 ≈ 45 kHz, f2 ≈ 280 kHz, k1 ≈ 5.80 N/m, k2 ≈ 210 N/m, A1 ≈ 350 nm, A2 ≈ 11 nm, amplitude setpoint (on the controlled amplitude) = 50%. For all the

Magnetic characterization of cobalt nanowires and square nanorings fabricated by focused electron beam induced deposition

• Federico Venturi,
• Gian Carlo Gazzadi,
• Amir H. Tavabi,
• Alberto Rota,
• Rafal E. Dunin-Borkowski and
• Stefano Frabboni

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1040–1049, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.97

• state is higher than that applied during horseshoe state observation. In order to validate the L-TEM results obtained at remanence and to measure the three-dimensional (3D) topography of the sample, additional analyses were carried out using AFM and MFM. A square nanoring was deposited at 5 keV on a Si

• substrate for MFM analysis. An AFM topography image is shown in Figure 4a, while a height profile taken across the middle of the nanoring is shown in Figure 4b. Both sides have a thickness of ca. 40 nm, a length of 1 μm and a width of ca. 100 nm. A topographic map of the same area is shown in Figure 4c. In

Electro-optical interfacial effects on a graphene/π-conjugated organic semiconductor hybrid system

• Karolline A. S. Araujo,
• Luiz A. Cury,
• Matheus J. S. Matos,
• Thales F. D. Fernandes,
• Luiz G. Cançado and
• Bernardo R. A. Neves

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 963–974, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.90

• the same region of a hybrid sample in dark and illuminated conditions, respectively (see Figures S4 and S5 for a topographic AFM image of this region and line profiles (topography and surface potential) extracted near the central region of the images, respectively, Supporting Information File 1). In

Nanoscale mapping of dielectric properties based on surface adhesion force measurements

• Ying Wang,
• Yue Shen,
• Xingya Wang,
• Zhiwei Shen,
• Bin Li,
• Jun Hu and
• Yi Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 900–906, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.84

• , the newly-developed PF-QNM mode of AFM made it possible to simultaneously map the adhesion property as well as topography of the sample with high spatial resolution. In PF-QNM mode, force–distance curves between the AFM tip and the sample are measured at each pixel, so the force where the tip finally

Towards the third dimension in direct electron beam writing of silver

• Katja Höflich,
• Jakub Mateusz Jurczyk,
• Katarzyna Madajska,
• Maximilian Götz,
• Luisa Berger,
• Carlos Guerra-Nuñez,
• Caspar Haverkamp,
• Iwona Szymanska and
• Ivo Utke

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 842–849, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.78

• a reference silver layer. The quantified carbon background of ca. 15 atom % was subtracted to determine the actual deposit composition. The topography of the deposits was monitored using atomic force microscopy (AFM) with an AIST Smart SPM system. Data processing was carried out using the free

• AgO2F5Prop. The red arrow on the right side depicts the direction in which the AFM profiles were taken. This was chosen such, that deposit deformations due to stage drift and beam blanker velocity do not influence the displayed topography below. The AFM profiles are the result of averaging over seven

Synthesis and characterization of two new TiO₂-containing benzothiazole-based imine composites for organic device applications

• Anna Różycka,
• Agnieszka Iwan,
• Krzysztof Artur Bogdanowicz,
• Michal Filapek,
• Natalia Górska,
• Damian Pociecha,
• Marek Malinowski,
• Patryk Fryń,
• Agnieszka Hreniak,
• Jakub Rysz,
• Paweł Dąbczyński and
• Monika Marzec

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 721–739, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.67

• out to be too rough to be measured with AFM, these samples were prepared with the spin coating technique (1000 rpm, 40 s). As one can see in Figure 10a, the topography of pure SP2 imine and SP2:TiO2 composites in each case reveals quite large crystallites randomly distributed on the glass surface, and

• Jeol ECZ-400 S spectrometer (1H - 400 MHz) with a delay time of 5 s. The measurements were carried out at room temperature on 10–15% (w/v) sample solutions. UV–vis spectra of SP1–SP2 compounds in a chloroform solution were recorded on a Jasco V670 spectrophotometer. AFM imaging of sample topography was

• measured at room temperature with the Agilent 5500 microscope working in non-contact mode. The setpoint and gains were adjusted to each measurement to obtain a clear image without noise. For each sample, topography images were collected at several randomly chosen areas. As described in [52

Combined pulsed laser deposition and non-contact atomic force microscopy system for studies of insulator metal oxide thin films

• Daiki Katsube,
• Hayato Yamashita,
• Satoshi Abo and
• Masayuki Abe

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 686–692, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.63

• deposition, a deposited sample was taken out into the ambient atmosphere and its topography was measured with a tapping AFM in air. Although it is difficult to obtain atomic resolution images in tapping mode, the larger scanning area of tapping AFM enabled us to check whether a step-and-terrace surface was

Tuning adhesion forces between functionalized gold colloidal nanoparticles and silicon AFM tips: role of ligands and capillary forces

• Sven Oras,
• Sergei Vlassov,
• Marta Berholts,
• Rünno Lõhmus and
• Karine Mougin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 660–670, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.61

• evaluate the impact of the NPs topography on the adhesion measurement at nanoscale. Results and Discussion Functionalized Au nanoparticles Au colloidal NPs used in the study ranged from a few to several tens of nanometers in size and had a polyhedral structure with well-defined facets (Figure 1). The most

• have strong influence on the intermolecular interactions between the silicon tip and the Au NPs. Adhesion of Au colloidal nanoparticles Freshly prepared NPs were drop-casted onto a silicon wafer and dried as described in the experimental section. Topography and adhesion of the NPs were measured by AFM

• in a PeakForce QNM Mode. Figure 2 displays AFM images of Au NPs topography and adhesion along with typical force–distance curves for Au NPs and Si substrate. Results show that adhesion force values are highly modulated by the nature of the tail group of the NPs thin coating as well as the NPs

Optimisation of purification techniques for the preparation of large-volume aqueous solar nanoparticle inks for organic photovoltaics

• Furqan Almyahi,
• Thomas R. Andersen,
• Nathan A. Cooling,
• Natalie P. Holmes,
• Matthew J. Griffith,
• Krishna Feron,
• Xiaojing Zhou,
• Warwick J. Belcher and
• Paul C. Dastoor

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 649–659, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.60

• concentration on the aqueous solar nanoparticle (ASNP) inks was investigated by monitoring the surface morphology/topography of the ASNP films using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and photovoltaic device performance as a function of ultrafiltration (decreasing SDS content

• ). The surface morphology/topography showed, as expected, a decreased number of SDS crystallites on the surface of the ASNP film with increased ultrafiltration steps. The device performance revealed distinct peaks in efficiency with ultrafiltration: centrifuge purified inks reached a maximum efficiency

• reached was 64 and 50 mN m−1 for the centrifugal and the crossflow purifications, respectively. Influence of free-SDS surfactant on the surface morphology/topography of ASNP films Optical microscopy and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were conducted for ASNP films with low, medium and high dilution factors

Lyapunov estimation for high-speed demodulation in multifrequency atomic force microscopy

• David M. Harcombe,
• Michael G. Ruppert,
• Michael R. P. Ragazzon and
• Andrew J. Fleming

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 490–498, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.47

• interactions [2], atomic scale resolution imaging is achieved, which far exceeds the optical diffraction limit. An image generated by constant-force topography AFM depends entirely on its feedback control loop. The composition of a sample is visualized in three-dimensions by plotting the control signal against

• samples, allowing for biophysical processes to be studied [6][7][8]. Multifrequency AFM (MF-AFM) methods allow for the study of tip–sample interactions occurring at multiple frequencies [9]. This extends imaging information beyond the topography to a range of nanomechanical properties including sample

• harmonics, respectively. (a,c): Topography in nanometers, (b) higher-harmonic phase (°) images taken with parallel LIAs, (d) higher-harmonic phase (°) images taken with the MF-LYAP.

Facile synthesis of ZnFe₂O₄ photocatalysts for decolourization of organic dyes under solar irradiation

• Arjun Behera,
• Debasmita Kandi,
• Sanjit Manohar Majhi,
• Satyabadi Martha and
• Kulamani Parida

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 436–446, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.42

• microscopy (FESEM) provides surface morphology and topography of the prepared materials. Figure 2 shows the surface topography of ZFO-500. The sample consists of agglomerated nanoparticles with smooth surface. The agglomeration of ZFO-500 is accompanied with the formation of small crystallites [28]. TEM The

Blister formation during graphite surface oxidation by Hummers’ method

• Olga V. Sinitsyna,
• Georgy B. Meshkov,
• Anastasija V. Grigorieva,
• Alexander A. Antonov,
• Inna G. Grigorieva and
• Igor V. Yaminsky

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 407–414, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.40

• steps on the surface. The present work is devoted to the evaluation of the topography changes during the initial stages of the graphite oxidation in order to clarify the role of the basal-plane surface in the diffusion of reagents. We chose the classical method of GO synthesis proposed by Hummers and

• additional experiment was conducted in which the time of the treatment with the oxidation mixture was 3 minutes. Sample characterization AFM measurements were carried out using a FemtoScan multifunctional scanning probe microscope produced by the Advanced Technologies Center. The surface topography was

Review: Electrostatically actuated nanobeam-based nanoelectromechanical switches – materials solutions and operational conditions

• Liga Jasulaneca,
• Jelena Kosmaca,
• Raimonds Meija,
• Jana Andzane and
• Donats Erts

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 271–300, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.29

• –Nordheim (FN) tunnelling [54][85][87][88]. The direct tunnelling occurs when the barrier is trapezoidal, and the FN tunnelling occurs when the barrier is triangular [10][89][90]. The shape of the initial potential barrier in the NEM switch contact depends on the size and topography of the contact area, as

Anchoring of a dye precursor on NiO(001) studied by non-contact atomic force microscopy

• Sara Freund,
• Antoine Hinaut,
• Nathalie Marinakis,
• Edwin C. Constable,
• Ernst Meyer,
• Catherine E. Housecroft and
• Thilo Glatzel

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 242–249, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.26

•  2 shows topography images of the bare NiO(001) surface measured by bimodal nc-AFM using both the first normal and torsional resonance frequency of the cantilever. In this mode high stability and resolution can be combined in order to get detailed information at the atomic scale even under room

• of recording a first scan line with a closed feedback loop where the tip–sample distance is regulated using a topographic set point Δf1 and then acquiring a second scan in a open feedback loop following the recorded topography but applying an additional constant Z-offset, reducing the tip–sample

Liquid-crystalline nanoarchitectures for tissue engineering

• Baeckkyoung Sung and
• Min-Ho Kim

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 205–215, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.22

• alignment of ECM fibers is known to control the cell shape and motion [53]. During development, growth, and proliferation, the 2D/3D topography of ECM affects the cell spreading, focal adhesion strength, and intercellular mechanical signaling [54]. For example, the guided migration of cells in the ECM was

• . Structurally ordered films have been fabricated by applying unidirectional shear force on a drop of concentrated M13 virus suspension, which resulted in a nematic-like organization of the viruses. The long-range order 2D nematic topography can guide the directional growth of hippocampal neural progenitor cells

• factors (2D/3D topography and mechanical stiffness) and the biochemical factors (cell binding and molecular stimulation). The mechanical feedback from the scaffold is transmitted to the cell nucleus (N) via actin bundles (stress fibers). The chemical signal is generated by growth factors and then

Combined scanning probe electronic and thermal characterization of an indium arsenide nanowire

• Tino Wagner,
• Fabian Menges,
• Heike Riel,
• Bernd Gotsmann and
• Andreas Stemmer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 129–136, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.15

• nanoscale tip with the surface. So far, electrical and thermal device characterization by scanning probe microscopy has often suffered from low lateral resolution [3][4][5][6], long-distance averaging effects [7][8][9], and topography-induced crosstalk [10][11][12], allowing for a mainly qualitative data

• topography, geometrical artefacts and feedback problems can be minimized by appropriate control schemes [20]. The typical lateral resolution of our SThM and KFM setups is on the order of the tip radius (below 10 nm), at a noise level of 20 μK·Hz−0.5 and 1 mV·Hz−0.5, respectively, depending on operating

• average power of 2.9 μW and a peak current of 30 μA is shown superimposed as a colour code on the topography scan in Figure 1b. From topography, the wire height is 60 nm. On both sides, the wire is electrically contacted by 120 nm high Au/Ni top electrodes, leaving a wire segment of approx. 1 μm in