Development of Ultra-High Vacuum Non-Contact Atomic Force Microscope and Its Applications

The ReactorAFM: non-contact atomic force microscope operating under high-pressure and high-temperature catalytic conditions.

An Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) has been integrated in a miniature high-pressure flow reactor for in-situ observations of heterogeneous catalytic reactions under conditions similar to those of industrial processes. The AFM can image model catalysts such as those consisting of metal nanoparticles on flat oxide supports in a gas atmosphere up to 6 bar and at a temperature up to 600 K, while the ...

Ultra-high resolution imaging of DNA and nucleosomes using non-contact atomic force microscopy.

Visualisation of nano-scale biomolecules aids understanding and development in molecular biology and nanotechnology. Detailed structure of nucleosomes adsorbed to mica has been captured in the absence of chemical-anchoring techniques, demonstrating the usefulness of non-contact atomic force microscopy (NC-AFM) for ultra-high resolution biomolecular imaging. NC-AFM offers significant advantages ...

Force-feedback High-speed Atomic Force Microscope

High-speed atomic force microscopy (HSAFM) has enabled researchers to view the nanometer-scale dynamic behavior of individual biological and bio-relevant molecules at a molecular-level resolution under physiologically relevant time scales, which is the realization of a dream in life sciences. These high-speed imaging applications now extend to the cellular/bacterial systems with the use of a sm...

A variable temperature ultrahigh vacuum atomic force microscope

A new atomic force microscope (AFM) that operates in ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) is described. The sample is held fixed with spring clamps while the AMF cantilever and deflection sensor are scanned above it. Thus, the sample is easily coupled to a liquid nitrogen cooled thermal reservoir which allows AFM operation from ≈ 100 K to room temperature. AFM operation above room temperature is also possibl...

Rolling Contact Fatigue in Ultra High Vacuum