Nicolas F. Martinez

Enhanced compositional sensitivity in atomic force microscopy by the excitation of the first two flexural modes

The authors demonstrate that the compositional sensitivity of an atomic force microscope is enhanced by the simultaneous excitation of its first two flexural eigenmodes. The coupling of those modes by the nonlinear probe-surface interactions enables to map compositional changes in several conjugated molecular materials with a phase shift sensitivity that is about one order of magnitude higher than the one achieved in amplitude modulation atomic force microscopy.

Bimodal atomic force microscopy imaging of isolated antibodies in air and liquids

We have developed a dynamic atomic force microscopy (AFM) method based on the simultaneous excitation of the first two flexural modes of the cantilever. The instrument, called a bimodal atomic force microscope, allows us to resolve the structural components of antibodies in both monomer and pentameric forms. The instrument operates in both high and low quality factor environments, i.e., air and liquids. We show that under the same experimental conditions, bimodal AFM is more sensitive to compositional changes than amplitude modulation AFM. By using theoretical and numerical methods, we study the material contrast sensitivity as well as the forces applied on the sample during bimodal AFM operation.

Imaging the surface stress and vibration modes of a microcantilever by laser beam deflection microscopy

There is a need for noninvasive techniques for simultaneous imaging of the stress and vibration mode shapes of nanomechanical systems in the fields of scanning probe microscopy, nanomechanical biological and chemical sensors and the semiconductor industry. Here we show a novel technique that combines a scanning laser, the beam deflection method and digital multifrequency excitation and analysis for simultaneous imaging of the static out-of-plane displacement and the shape of five vibration modes of nanomechanical systems. The out-of-plane resolution is at least 100 pm Hz⁻¹/² and the lateral resolution, which is determined by the laser spot size, is 1-1.5 μm. The capability of the technique is demonstrated by imaging the residual surface stress of a microcantilever together with the shape of the first 22 vibration modes. The vibration behavior is compared with rigorous finite element simulations. The technique is suitable for major improvements in the imaging of liquids, such as higher bandwidth and enhanced spatial resolution.

Molecular scale energy dissipation in oligothiophene monolayers measured by dynamic force microscopy

We perform a combined experimental and theoretical approach to establish the atomistic origin of energy dissipation occurring while imaging a molecular surface with an amplitude modulation atomic force microscope. We show that the energy transferred by a single nano-asperity to a sexithiophene monolayer is about 0.15 eV/cycle. The configuration space sampled by the tip depends on whether it approaches or withdraws from the surface. The asymmetry arises because of the presence of energy barriers among different deformations of the molecular geometry. This is the source of the material contrast provided by the phase-shift images.

Repulsive bimodal atomic force microscopy on polymers

Summary Bimodal atomic force microscopy can provide high-resolution images of polymers. In the bimodal operation mode, two eigenmodes of the cantilever are driven simultaneously. When examining polymers, an effective mechanical contact is often required between the tip and the sample to obtain compositional contrast, so particular emphasis was placed on the repulsive regime of dynamic force microscopy. We thus investigated bimodal imaging on a polystyrene-block-polybutadiene diblock copolymer surface and on polystyrene. The attractive operation regime was only stable when the amplitude of the second eigenmode was kept small compared to the amplitude of the fundamental mode. To clarify the influence of the higher eigenmode oscillation on the image quality, the amplitude ratio of both modes was systematically varied. Fourier analysis of the time series recorded during imaging showed frequency mixing. However, these spurious signals were at least two orders of magnitude smaller than the first two fundamental eigenmodes. Thus, repulsive bimodal imaging of polymer surfaces yields a good signal quality for amplitude ratios smaller than A 01 /A 02 = 10:1 without affecting the topography feedback.

Height measurements on soft samples: applied force, molecules deformation and phase shift

In Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) the topographic height is related to the tip-surface interaction and, consequently, to the applied force [1]. This phenomenon is expected to be relevant in soft samples, such as organic thin films, where the applied force can deform molecules or, in extreme cases, destroy the film.