Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Liu, J.
• Grierson, D. S.
• Moldovan, N.
• Notbohm, J.
• Li, S.
• Jaroenapibal, P.
• O'Connor, S. D.
• Sumant, A. V.
• Neelakantan, N.
• Carlisle, J. A.
• Turner, K. T.
• Carpick, R. W.

Titel

Preventing Nanoscale Wear of Atomic Force Microscopy Tips Through the Use of Monolithic Ultrananocrystalline Diamond Probes

Ist Teil von

• Small (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany), 2010-05, Vol.6 (10), p.1140-1149

Ort / Verlag

Weinheim: WILEY-VCH Verlag

Erscheinungsjahr

2010

Quelle

Wiley Online Library Journals Frontfile Complete

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• Nanoscale wear is a key limitation of conventional atomic force microscopy (AFM) probes that results in decreased resolution, accuracy, and reproducibility in probe‐based imaging, writing, measurement, and nanomanufacturing applications. Diamond is potentially an ideal probe material due to its unrivaled hardness and stiffness, its low friction and wear, and its chemical inertness. However, the manufacture of monolithic diamond probes with consistently shaped small‐radius tips has not been previously achieved. The first wafer‐level fabrication of monolithic ultrananocrystalline diamond (UNCD) probes with <5‐nm grain sizes and smooth tips with radii of 30–40 nm is reported, which are obtained through a combination of microfabrication and hot‐filament chemical vapor deposition. Their nanoscale wear resistance under contact‐mode scanning conditions is compared with that of conventional silicon nitride (SiNx) probes of similar geometry at two different relative humidity levels (≈15 and ≈70%). While SiNx probes exhibit significant wear that further increases with humidity, UNCD probes show little measurable wear. The only significant degradation of the UNCD probes observed in one case is associated with removal of the initial seed layer of the UNCD film. The results show the potential of a new material for AFM probes and demonstrate a systematic approach to studying wear at the nanoscale. Monolithic diamond probes with integrated tips possessing small radii, smooth surfaces, and controlled geometry are fabricated by a wafer‐level process. The tips have superior wear resistance to that of SiNx tips under contact‐mode scanning conditions at low and high humidity, and under stresses in the 2–8 GPa range.