Optimal geometry for a quartz multipurpose SPM sensor

• Julian Stirling

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 370–376, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.43

• Julian Stirling School of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham, NG7 2RD, United Kingdom 10.3762/bjnano.4.43 Abstract We propose a geometry for a piezoelectric SPM sensor that can be used for combined AFM/LFM/STM. The sensor utilises symmetry to provide

• microscopes (AFM) and lateral force microscopes (LFM), however, the sensor is more complex. The atomically sharp probe must be combined with a force sensor, usually a cantilever, with either piezoelectric or optical deflection detection. For noncontact AFM (NC-AFM) and dynamic LFM (DLFM), where the sensor is

• of the tip itself. Any bending of the tip will not be detected by the piezoelectric quartz sensor. Thus, treating the tip as a cantilever, its spring constant must be much greater than the effective lateral spring constant for the sensor (klat), otherwise this will result in incorrect force

Photoresponse from single upright-standing ZnO nanorods explored by photoconductive AFM

• Igor Beinik,
• Markus Kratzer,
• Astrid Wachauer,
• Lin Wang,
• Yuri P. Piryatinski,
• Gerhard Brauer,
• Xin Yi Chen,
• Yuk Fan Hsu,
• Aleksandra B. Djurišić and
• Christian Teichert

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 208–217, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.21

• temperature) and high exciton binding energy (60 meV) and being piezoelectric, ZnO is one of the most promising semiconductor materials. Fields of application include solar cells [1][2][3][4], piezo-actuators [5], energy harvesting devices [6], and photosensors [7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16]. A common

Catalytic activity of nanostructured Au: Scale effects versus bimetallic/bifunctional effects in low-temperature CO oxidation on nanoporous Au

• Lu-Cun Wang,
• Yi Zhong,
• Haijun Jin,
• Daniel Widmann,
• Jörg Weissmüller and
• R. Jürgen Behm

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 111–128, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.13

• , piezoelectric pulse valves were used to generate gas pulses of typically ~1 × 1016 molecules per pulse. For all measurements presented, these pulses contained 50% Ar as an internal standard to enable quantitative evaluation on an absolute scale. The gas pulses were directed into a quartz-tube microreactor with

Calculation of the effect of tip geometry on noncontact atomic force microscopy using a qPlus sensor

• Julian Stirling and
• Gordon A. Shaw

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 10–19, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.2

• negligible rotation. Experimental validation The resulting lateral motion was measured experimentally for Omicron Nanotechnology qPlus sensors excited mechanically from below by a piezoelectric actuator (Figure 3c). The actuator was driven by a digital lock-in amplifier (Perkin Elmer 7280 DSP). The

• deflection of the qPlus sensor was measured by using a laser Doppler vibrometer (Polytec OFV-522) connected to a lock-in amplifier. The qPlus sensor and piezoelectric actuator was mounted on an encoded translation stage allowing deflection measurements to be recorded in multiple positions on the sensor. A 45

Probing three-dimensional surface force fields with atomic resolution: Measurement strategies, limitations, and artifact reduction

• Mehmet Z. Baykara,
• Omur E. Dagdeviren,
• Todd C. Schwendemann,
• Harry Mönig,
• Eric I. Altman and
• Udo D. Schwarz

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 637–650, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.73

• quantitatively and qualitatively, including: thermal and electronic drift during the measurement, nonlinearities and creep associated with piezoelectric scan elements used in the microscope, variability of tip-apex structure and chemistry between different experiments, and elastic deformations of the tip under

• during force-spectroscopy experiments, the use of digital electronics for NC-AFM detection and control generally eliminates the effects of electronic drifts on measured data. Piezo nonlinearities and piezo creep Positioning devices that employ piezoelectric materials to realize voltage-controlled

• relative positioning of the tip and sample are widely used in SPM experiments (see, e.g., Figure 2) [38][39][40]. Despite subpicometer positioning accuracy, piezoelectric scanners display fundamental shortcomings. The most important limitation originates from the fact that the relationship between applied

Mapping mechanical properties of organic thin films by force-modulation microscopy in aqueous media

• Jianming Zhang,
• Zehra Parlak,
• Carleen M. Bowers,
• Terrence Oas and
• Stefan Zauscher

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 464–474, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.53

• feedback controller of the AFM keeps the tip–sample force constant during the surface scan. In addition, however, a piezoelectric transducer in the cantilever holder was used to excite the cantilever with a small amplitude, off-resonance frequency. A lock-in amplifier (AMETEK model 7280) was used to

Functionalised zinc oxide nanowire gas sensors: Enhanced NO₂ gas sensor response by chemical modification of nanowire surfaces

• Eric R. Waclawik,
• Jin Chang,
• Andrea Ponzoni,
• Isabella Concina,
• Dario Zappa,
• Elisabetta Comini,
• Nunzio Motta,
• Guido Faglia and
• Giorgio Sberveglieri

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 368–377, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.43

• an effect that is likely to modify the chemiresistor response significantly [3]. ZnO is one of the most widely studied materials, due to its promising optical, optoelectronic and piezoelectric properties [9][10]. Furthermore, ZnO materials can be reliably synthesised in a variety of different

Simultaneous current, force and dissipation measurements on the Si(111) 7×7 surface with an optimized qPlus AFM/STM technique

• Zsolt Majzik,
• Martin Setvín,
• Andreas Bettac,
• Albrecht Feltz,
• Vladimír Cháb and
• Pavel Jelínek

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 249–259, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.28

• , piezoelectric quartz tuning forks similar to those used as frequency references in watches. The configuration when one of the prongs is attached to a solid substrate and the free prong acts as a cantilever with the capability of self-sensing, is called qPlus, named by Giessibl [12]. One of the largest benefits

Transport through molecular junctions

• Jan M. van Ruitenbeek

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 691–692, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.74

• for addressing molecules, which typically have a length of the order of one nanometre. Several methods have now been established that can meet the requirements, of which three are particularly prominent: The electrode separation can be mechanically adjusted at will, through piezoelectric actuators, in

Distinguishing magnetic and electrostatic interactions by a Kelvin probe force microscopy–magnetic force microscopy combination

• Miriam Jaafar,
• Oscar Iglesias-Freire,
• Luis Serrano-Ramón,
• Manuel Ricardo Ibarra,
• Jose Maria de Teresa and
• Agustina Asenjo

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 552–560, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.59

• conservative interactions. In the amplitude modulation mode, the amplitude is the main feedback parameter and thus the movement of the piezoelectric is used to build the topography image. The frequency shift changes are recorded at a certain distance to build the magnetic image, thus the MFM images were