Resonant harmonic response in tapping-mode atomic force microscopy
Date
2004Source Title
Physical Review B (Condensed Matter) Physical Review B: covering condensed matter and materials physics
Print ISSN
2469-9950
Electronic ISSN
0163-1829
Publisher
American Physical Society
Volume
69
Issue
16
Pages
165416-1 - 165416-9
Language
English
Type
ArticleItem Usage Stats
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Abstract
Higher harmonics in tapping-mode atomic force microscopy offers the potential for imaging and sensing material properties at the nanoscale. The signal level at a given harmonic of the fundamental mode can be enhanced if the cantilever is designed in such a way that the frequency of one of the higher harmonics of the fundamental mode (designated as the resonant harmonic) matches the resonant frequency of a higher-order flexural mode. Here we present an analytical approach that relates the amplitude and phase of the cantilever vibration at the frequency of the resonant harmonic to the elastic modulus of the sample. The resonant harmonic response is optimized for different samples with a proper design of the cantilever. It is found that resonant harmonics are sensitive to the stiffness of the material under investigation.
Keywords
Amplitude modulationAtomic force microscopy
Imaging
Mathematical analysis
Nanoparticle
Remote sensing
Vibration