Calibration of lateral force measurements in atomic force microscopy with a piezoresistive force sensor

We present here a method to calibrate the lateral force in the atomic force microscope. This method makes use of an accurately calibrated force sensor composed of a tipless piezoresistive cantilever and corresponding signal amplifying and processing electronics. Two ways of force loading with different loading points were compared by scanning the top and side edges of the piezoresistive cantilever. Conversion factors between the lateral force and photodiode signal using three types of atomic force microscope cantilevers with rectangular geometries (normal spring constants from 0.092 to 1.24 N/m and lateral stiffness from 10.34 to 101.06 N/m) were measured in experiments using the proposed method. When used properly, this method calibrates the conversion factors that are accurate to +/-12.4% or better. This standard has less error than the commonly used method based on the cantilever's beam mechanics. Methods such of this allow accurate and direct conversion between lateral forces and photodiode signals without any knowledge of the cantilevers and the laser measuring system.     

A new calibration method of the lateral contact stiffness and lateral force using modulated lateral force microscopy

We describe a new calibration method for lateral contact stiffness using modulated lateral force microscopy, a technique that offers some advantages with respect to the more classical friction force microscopy currently used for characterizing the friction properties of materials. The calibration method is based on the study of the lateral contact stiffness versus applied load and on the use of elasticity contact theories to determine by fit the calibration coefficient, allowing the scaling of experimental data. The method is tested by measuring the friction coefficient and shear strength of silicon and mica samples, respectively, and compared with results from the literature. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Fabrication of robot head module using contact-resistance force sensor for human-robot interaction and its evaluation

This paper presents a design of a robot head module with touch sensing algorithms that can simultaneously detect contact force and location. The module is constructed with a hemisphere and three sensor-units that are fabricated using contact-resistance force sensors. The surface-part is designed with the hemisphere that measures 300 mm in diameter and 150 mm in height. Placed at the bottom of the robot head module are three sensor-units fabricated using a simple screen printing technique. The contact force and the location of the model are evaluated through the calibration setup. The experiment showed that the calculated contact positions almost coincided with the applied load points as the contact location changed with a location error of about ±8.67 mm. The force responses of the module were evaluated at two points under loading and unloading conditions from 0 N to 5 N. The robot head module showed almost the same force responses at the two points.     

Tribological interaction between multi-walled carbon nanotubes and silica surface using lateral force microscopy

This work presents the tribological interaction between multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and silica surface using lateral manipulation in the atomic force microscope (AFM). The MWCNT is mechanically manipulated by a pyramidal silicon probe of an AFM using the same scan mechanism as in the imaging mode. With a controlled normal force of the AFM probe, it was found that lateral force applied to the MWCNT could overcome the tribological adhesion between MWCNT and silica surface, causing individual MWCNT to rotate on the silica. According to the results, the shear stresses due to tribological interacting with the MWCNTs and the silica are 59.6 MPa and 64.8 MPa for the MWCNT 1 (100 nm diameter) and the MWCNT 2 (60 nm diameter), respectively. Experimental results show that the shear stress increases with the increasing rotation angle for each manipulation, from which we determine the linear fitting function. In addition, we determine the relationship between push point and pivot point to realize the rotation behavior. The implications of tribological interaction between the MWCNTs and silica surface are discussed in detail.     

Prototype cantilevers for quantitative lateral force microscopy

Prototype cantilevers are presented that enable quantitative surface force measurements using contact-mode atomic force microscopy (AFM). The "hammerhead" cantilevers facilitate precise optical lever system calibrations for cantilever flexure and torsion, enabling quantifiable adhesion measurements and friction measurements by lateral force microscopy (LFM). Critically, a single hammerhead cantilever of known flexural stiffness and probe length dimension can be used to perform both a system calibration as well as surface force measurements in situ, which greatly increases force measurement precision and accuracy. During LFM calibration mode, a hammerhead cantilever allows an optical lever "torque sensitivity" to be generated for the quantification of LFM friction forces. Precise calibrations were performed on two different AFM instruments, in which torque sensitivity values were specified with sub-percent relative uncertainty. To examine the potential for accurate lateral force measurements using the prototype cantilevers, finite element analysis predicted measurement errors of a few percent or less, which could be reduced via refinement of calibration methodology or cantilever design. The cantilevers are compatible with commercial AFM instrumentation and can be used for other AFM techniques such as contact imaging and dynamic mode measurements.     

Investigation of nanoparticles by atomic and lateral force microscopy

Metallic nanoparticles have been produced on vitreous carbon substrates by means of thermal evaporation. From pictures of the particles, made by a high-resolution scanning electron microscope (HRSEM), a semispherical shape is suggested due to the total mass of deposited material. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) has been applied to this sample in order to get direct topographic information. The AFM has been operated with normal and super tips, the latter having a smaller cone angle and radius, thus following more precisely the contours of an object. Simultaneously lateral-force microscopic (LFM) images have been recorded. Major differences between the contents of HRSEM- and AFM-images are considered, emphasizing the important influence of the tips' geometry. Both the AFM and LFM line scans have been compared with and have qualitatively agreed with those calculated under simplifying assumptions.     

Easy and direct method for calibrating atomic force microscopy lateral force measurements

We have designed and tested a new, inexpensive, easy-to-make and easy-to-use calibration standard for atomic force microscopy (AFM) lateral force measurements. This new standard simply consists of a small glass fiber of known dimensions and Young's modulus, which is fixed at one end to a substrate and which can be bent laterally with the AFM tip at the other end. This standard has equal or less error than the commonly used method of using beam mechanics to determine a cantilever's lateral force constant. It is transferable, thus providing a universal tool for comparing the calibrations of different instruments. It does not require knowledge of the cantilever dimensions and composition or its tip height. This standard also allows direct conversion of the photodiode signal to force and, thus, circumvents the requirement for a sensor response (sensitivity) measurement.     

压电薄膜力传感器及其牙咬力的测量应用研究

本文介绍一种用于测量牙咬力的传感器-压电簿膜力传感器.它应用压电薄膜受到机械应力产生电极化,从而产生电荷的原理来测量牙咬力.这种压电薄膜厚度仅25μm,用它来作为传感器测量牙咬力时无咬合间隙,测量的值能反映出牙齿真实的咬力.     

Development of eddy current microscopy for high resolution electrical conductivity imaging using atomic force microscopy

We present a high resolution electrical conductivity imaging technique based on the principles of eddy current and atomic force microscopy (AFM). An electromagnetic coil is used to generate eddy currents in an electrically conducting material. The eddy currents generated in the conducting sample are detected and measured with a magnetic tip attached to a flexible cantilever of an AFM. The eddy current generation and its interaction with the magnetic tip cantilever are theoretically modeled using monopole approximation. The model is used to estimate the eddy current force between the magnetic tip and the electrically conducting sample. The theoretical model is also used to choose a magnetic tip-cantilever system with appropriate magnetic field and spring constant to facilitate the design of a high resolution electrical conductivity imaging system. The force between the tip and the sample due to eddy currents is measured as a function of the separation distance and compared to the model in a single crystal copper. Images of electrical conductivity variations in a polycrystalline dual phase titanium alloy (Ti-6Al-4V) sample are obtained by scanning the magnetic tip-cantilever held at a standoff distance from the sample surface. The contrast in the image is explained based on the electrical conductivity and eddy current force between the magnetic tip and the sample. The spatial resolution of the eddy current imaging system is determined by imaging carbon nanofibers in a polymer matrix. The advantages, limitations, and applications of the technique are discussed.     

Atomistic study of lateral contact stiffness in friction force microscopy

The effective stiffness of a friction force microscope tip–substrate system is an important parameter that describes the relationship between lateral force and elastic deformation. In this study, we use a multi-spring model to simplify the system, where two contributions, the tip apex stiffness and the lateral contact stiffness, are discussed in detail. Molecular dynamics simulations are used to characterize stiffness by simulating a tip apex subject to shear or sliding over a substrate surface. The results show that, although the height of the tip apex and tip–substrate orientation affect the various stiffness contributions, the contact itself dominates the overall compliance.     

Effect of contact stiffness on wedge calibration of lateral force in atomic force microscopy

Quantitative friction measurement of nanomaterials in atomic force microscope requires accurate calibration method for lateral force. The effect of contact stiffness on lateral force calibration of atomic force microscope is discussed in detail and an improved calibration method is presented. The calibration factor derived from the original method increased with the applied normal load, which indicates that separate calibration should be required for every given applied normal load to keep the accuracy of friction measurement. We improve the original method by introducing the contact factor, which is derived from the contact stiffness between the tip and the sample, to the calculation of calibration factors. The improved method makes the calculation of calibration factors under different applied normal loads possible without repeating the calibration procedure. Comparative experiments on a silicon wafer have been done by both the two methods to validate the method in this article.     

Fabrication of four-point biped robot foot module based on contact-resistance force sensor and its evaluation

This paper presents the design of robot foot module of four-point biped walking robot and its fabrication. The foot module has four sensor units based on contact-resistance force sensor. The thin-film-type force sensor is fabricated by coating resistive ink on thin polyimide film using silk screening technique. The simple structure is devised and fabricated to assemble the thin force sensor rigidly. The unit force sensor module is evaluated by the calibration setup to obtain the characteristics of repeatability and hysteresis. The sensor module presents hysteresis error of about 5% and repeatability error of about 0.37%. The calculated zero moment point (ZMP) of the foot module is also compared with the measured position using static load of 50 N. The maximum location error of ZMP is less than 10%. The robot foot module shows the possibility of applying it to humanoid walking.     

Improved lateral force calibration based on the angle conversion factor in atomic force microscopy

A novel calibration method is proposed for determining lateral forces in atomic force microscopy (AFM), by introducing an angle conversion factor, which is defined as the ratio of the twist angle of a cantilever to the corresponding lateral signal. This factor greatly simplifies the calibration procedures. Once the angle conversion factor is determined in AFM, the lateral force calibration factors of any rectangular cantilever can be obtained by simple computation without further experiments. To determine the angle conversion factor, this study focuses on the determination of the twist angle of a cantilever during lateral force calibration in AFM. Since the twist angle of a cantilever cannot be directly measured in AFM, the angles are obtained by means of the moment balance equations between a rectangular AFM cantilever and a simple commercially available step grating. To eliminate the effect of the adhesive force, the gradients of the lateral signals and the twist angles as a function of normal force are used in calculating the angle conversion factor. To verify reliability and reproducibility of the method, two step gratings with different heights and two different rectangular cantilevers were used in lateral force calibration in AFM. The results showed good agreement, to within 10%. This method was validated by comparing the coefficient of friction of mica so determined with values in the literature.     

原子力显微镜原理与应用技术

本文简述原子力显微镜的工作原理,对比说明敲击模式的优越性,指出针尖-样品卷积效应和假象产生的原因,并例证其应用领域及其测试效果。     

A compact sensor head for simultaneous scanning force and near-field optical microscopy

A compact sensor head based on scanning force microscopy (SFM) using cantilever probes has been developed. The idea is to replace the microscope objective of a conventional optical microscope by this compact module and turn the optical microscope into a scanning force and near-field optical microscope with subwavelength resolution. We describe our concept and present initial results showing images of the object’s optical properties and surface topography recorded simultaneously.     

A high frequency sensor for optical beam deflection atomic force microscopy

We demonstrate a novel electronic readout for quadrant photodiode based optical beam deflection setups. In our readout, the signals used to calculate the deflections remain as currents, instead of undergoing an immediate conversion to voltages. Bipolar current mirrors are used to perform all mathematical operations at the transistor level, including the signal normalizing division. This method has numerous advantages, leading to significantly simpler designs that avoid large voltage swings and parasitic capacitances. The bandwidth of our readout is solely limited by the capacitance of the quadrant photodiode junctions, making the effective bandwidth a function of the intensity of photocurrents and thus the applied power of the beam deflection laser. Using commercially available components and laser intensities of 1-4 mW we achieved a 3 dB bandwidth of 20 MHz with deflection sensitivities of up to 0.5-1 V/nm and deflection noise levels below 4.5 fm/Hz. Atomic resolution imaging of muscovite mica using FM-AFM in water demonstrates the sensitivity of this novel readout.     

The effect of deformation on the lateral resolution of atomic force microscopy

A computer model based on the elastic properties of rubber is introduced for the evaluation of the lateral resolution in atomic force microscopy of deformable specimens. The computational results show that, if the full width at half-height can be defined as the lateral resolution, it is continuously improved at greater probe forces, at the expense of a reduced molecular height. In fact, even for a probe that is bigger than the molecule, the real size of the molecule can be 'recovered' at about 25% compression. This result demonstrates that for a better lateral resolution, a greater probe force can be beneficial, provided that the molecule is not moved or damaged and the response remains elastic. Measurements on isolated low-density lipoproteins (LDL) show that with 26% vertical compression, the lateral size measured in atomic force microscopy is only about 72% of the value predicted by a simple convolution, and is only slightly larger (≈ 13%) than the known size of LDL. Therefore, the results on LDL provide a direct support for the conclusions of the computational model.     

Investigation of protein partnerships using atomic force microscopy

The origin of contrast in atomic force microscopy (AFM) lies in the probe's response to forces between itself and the sample. These forces most commonly result from changes in height as the tip is scanned over the surface, but can also originate in properties inherent in the sample. These have been exploited as further means of contrast and have spawned an array of similar imaging techniques, such as chemical force microscopy, magnetic force microscopy, and frictional force microscopy. All of these techniques use AFM as an extremely sensitive gauge to map forces at discrete sites on the surface. A natural extension of this approach is to map forces in an array, in order to create a force map. AFM can be used in aqueous or fluid environments, thus allowing the exploration of forces in biological systems under physiologically relevant conditions. By immobilizing one half of an interacting pair of proteins onto the tip and the other half onto the substrate, it is possible to investigate the electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions between them. We employed these techniques to examine the interaction between a pair of proteins of known affinity that are involved in exocytosis (NSF and alpha-SNAP) and separately to demonstrate how two-dimensional force mapping can be applied to the nuclear envelope to identify nuclear pore complexes.     

Characterization of asphaltene structure using atomic force microscopy

In this study, at the first stage, asphaltene was extracted. The roughness of asphaltene coating at different rpm was studied using an image analysis confocal microscopy. The basics of quantum mechanics and statistical thermodynamics are used to predict the potential energy and the intermolecular forces of asphaltene molecules. The functional forms for the potential energy and intermolecular forces are evaluated. Our final goal is to be able to observe and determine the surface structures of asphaltene micelles with scanning probe microscopes. So, the focus of the work on these unusual molecules is to characterize their structure, dynamics and thermodynamics and to establish the relationship between these properties and petroleum fluid behaviour. The existence of various nanostructures of asphaltene in petroleum has been extensively discussed. A set of fitted data is used to check the validity of the calculated results. The good agreement between the proposed models and the data is promising.     

压电式轴上六维力传感器的研制

本文对现有的六维力传感器及其力敏元件进行分析和研究,研制了一种能准确测量轴上空间六维力的新型四支点压电石英并联式轴上六维力传感器.选择压电石英作为四支点六维力传感器的力敏元件,提出了两种不同的力敏元件空间布置方式,对其建立了数学模型和解耦计算,得到作用在轴上的空间六维力.分析了压电石英传感器测量轴上六维力产生偏差的原因,通过实验进行了验证,确定出压电石英六维力传感器的力敏元件相对合理的布置方式,为轴上六维力测量提供了参考依据.