AVS 53rd International Symposium
    Surface Science Thursday Sessions
       Session SS-ThP

Paper SS-ThP19
Tunable Frequency Alternating Current Scanning Tunneling Microscope for Surface Excitation in the Microwave Frequency Range

Thursday, November 16, 2006, 5:30 pm, Room 3rd Floor Lobby

Session: Surface Science Poster Session
Presenter: A.M. Moore, The Pennsylvania State University
Authors: A.M. Moore, The Pennsylvania State University
P.S. Weiss, The Pennsylvania State University
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We have built a scanning tunneling microscope (STM) capable of measuring the response of surfaces excited with microwave frequencies (up to 20 GHz) at sub-nanometer resolution. Two frequencies are applied to the STM tip and the nonlinearity of the tunnel junction mixes the frequencies, generating new signals including at the difference of the frequencies applied. This ultrahigh resolution (<1 nm) profiling tool enhances and complements what is obtained through current metrology tools and will support semiconductor processing as the size scale of devices continues to decrease. It will allow us to study single molecule rotations excited at microwave frequencies and also allow us subsurface properties of thin films and cluster-assembled materials.