SOUTHWEST RESEARCH INSTITUTE

Rheology and Texture Analysis

Microscopy

Spectroscopy

Contact Us

SwRI Information

Home

Atomic Force Microscopy

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is a powerful technique that can image the topography of a surface with nanometer resolution, as well as probe its local mechanical and electrical properties. AFM is routinely used to evaluate the surface structure of semiconductors, polymers, adhesive materials, and biological samples.

The topography (left) of a conductive semiconductor device shows a series of interlocking “fingers” separated by trenches. The electrostatic image (right) shows every other finger carries a voltage, while the others are grounded.

	PSIA XE-100 atomic force microscope

The XE-100 AFM at Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) operates in various contact and noncontact modes to measure different surface properties:

• Image soft biological samples without degrading the sample using the noncontact mode.

• Phase images from the noncontact mode can also indicate regions of different adhesion and stiffness.

• Reveal areas of different frictional force on an heterogeneous surface by monitoring the lateral force in contact mode.

• Use the electrostatic force mode to probe the local electrical properties of a surface by applying a voltage between the sample and a conductive AFM tip.

The AFM accepts sample sizes as large as 100 mm × 100 mm × 20 mm thick, with masses up to 500 g. The X-Y scanner can image areas as large as 50 μm × 50 μm, with a resolution of <0.15 nm. The Z scanner can measure surface features as high as 12 mm, with a resolution of <0.05 nm.

For more information about our atomic force microscopy capabilities, or how you can contract with SwRI, please e-mail chemphys@swri.org, or call (210) 522-6259.

chemphys.swri.org

| Science and Analysis Department | Applied Power Division | SwRI Home |

Southwest Research Institute^® (SwRI^®), headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, is a multidisciplinary, independent, nonprofit, applied engineering and physical sciences research and development organization with 11 technical divisions.

June 16, 2011