Atomic resolution in scanning force microscopy: Concepts, requirements, contrast mechanisms, and image interpretation

2000 ◽  
Vol 62 (19) ◽  
pp. 13089-13097 ◽  
Author(s):  
Udo D. Schwarz ◽  
Hendrik Hölscher ◽  
Roland Wiesendanger
Keyword(s):  
Image Interpretation ◽  
Scanning Force Microscopy ◽  
Atomic Resolution ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Contrast Mechanisms ◽  
Scanning Force

Resolution Issues in Scanned Probe Microscopy

1997 ◽  
Vol 3 (S2) ◽  
pp. 1187-1188
Author(s):  
P. E. Russell
Keyword(s):  
Scanning Force Microscopy ◽  
Atomic Resolution ◽  
Scanning Tunneling ◽  
Tunneling Microscopy ◽  
Probe Microscopy ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Atomic Force ◽  
Sample Height ◽  
Scanned Probe Microscopy ◽  
Scanning Force

Scanned Probe Microscopy first received widespread recognition in the form of scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) images clearly showing atomic resolution of the Si 111 surface in the characteristic 7×7 surface reconstruction. For this sample, STM imaging under carefully controlled ultrahigh vacuum conditions reveals the clear image of each atom position within the surface unit cell with excellent contrast and clearly atomic resolution. Over the past few years, versions of scanning force microscopy (commonly referred to as atomic force microscopy or AFM) have become much more widespread than STM. A very common, and very difficult question, is: What is the resolution of AFM? The simple answer is that SPM in general, and STM and AFM in particular, routinely obtain sub-angstrom resolution—in the z axis, or the sample height direction. This high resolution capability is easily demonstrated by scanning a cleaved crystal of known lattice spacing and observing single and multiple atomic steps.

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