Probe tip

A probe tip is an instrument used in <a href="/facts/Scanning_probe_microscopy/uJJPXQLN">scanning probe microscopes</a> (SPMs) to scan the surface of a sample and make nano-scale images of <a href="/facts/Surface/0XA8ce89">surfaces</a> and structures. The probe tip is mounted on the end of a <a href="/facts/Cantilever/Ueu6vIXI">cantilever</a> and can be as sharp as a single <a href="/facts/Atom/FoQ4kGN5">atom</a>. In <a href="/facts/Microscopy/GpHlElDS">microscopy</a>, probe tip geometry (length, width, shape, <a href="/facts/Aspect_ratio/1LVBgtfT">aspect ratio</a>, and tip apex radius) and the composition (material properties) of both the tip and the surface being probed directly affect <a href="/facts/Image_resolution/NAL4uFV9">resolution</a> and imaging quality. Tip size and shape are extremely important in monitoring and detecting interactions between surfaces. SPMs can precisely measure <a href="/facts/Electrostatic_forces/V0lR5NKv">electrostatic forces</a>, <a href="/facts/Magnetic_field/Ta8Ev588">magnetic forces</a>, <a href="/facts/Chemical_bond/ArNUMnIB">chemical bonding</a>, <a href="/facts/Van_der_Waals_forces/jyGU8Vh9">Van der Waals forces</a>, and <a href="/facts/Capillary_forces/aa60yQ32">capillary forces</a>. SPMs can also reveal the morphology and <a href="/facts/Topography/SS8Bx4t9">topography</a> of a surface.
The use of probe-based tools began with the invention of <a href="/facts/Scanning_tunneling_microscope/LQ4BzmwP">scanning tunneling microscopy</a> (STM) and <a href="/facts/Atomic_force_microscopy/JDbdsvdy">atomic force microscopy</a> (AFM), collectively called <a href="/facts/Scanning_probe_microscopy/uJJPXQLN">scanning probe microscopy</a> (SPM) by <a href="/facts/Gerd_Binnig/XRsNRMql">Gerd Binnig</a> and <a href="/facts/Heinrich_Rohrer/Mspnj4vx">Heinrich Rohrer</a> at the IBM Zurich research laboratory in 1982. It opened a new era for probing the <a href="/facts/Nanoscopic_scale/hyFgwMKM">nano-scale</a> world of individual atoms and molecules as well as studying surface science, due to their unprecedented capability to characterize the mechanical, chemical, magnetic, and optical functionalities of various samples at nanometer-scale resolution in a vacuum, ambient, or fluid environment.
The increasing demand for sub-nanometer probe tips is attributable to their robustness and versatility. Applications of sub-nanometer probe tips exist in the fields of <a href="/facts/Nanolithography/lEmvukHt">nanolithography</a>, <a href="/facts/Nanoelectronics/6wRdmMCB">nanoelectronics</a>, <a href="/facts/Biosensor/MaUAS0gD">biosensor</a>, <a href="/facts/Electrochemistry/C0RUWpBH">electrochemistry</a>, <a href="/facts/Semiconductor/zFf3mGTE">semiconductor</a>, <a href="/facts/Surface_micromachining/3b97xV3E">micromachining</a> and biological studies.

Probe tip open-in-new

Probe tip