AVS 59th Annual International Symposium and Exhibition
    Exhibitor Technology Spotlight Tuesday Sessions
       Session EW-TuL

Paper EW-TuL6
KolibriSensor and Tyto: New Milestones in Scanning Probe Microscopy

Tuesday, October 30, 2012, 1:40 pm, Room West Hall

Session: Exhibitor Technology Spotlight
Presenter: A. Thissen, SPECS Surface Nano Analysis GmbH, Germany
Authors: T. Hänke, SPECS Surface Nano Analysis GmbH, Germany
Y. Dedkov, SPECS Surface Nano Analysis GmbH, Germany
A. Pioda, SPECS Surface Nano Analysis GmbH, Germany
T. Kampen, SPECS Surface Nano Analysis GmbH, Germany
A. Thissen, SPECS Surface Nano Analysis GmbH, Germany
Correspondent: Click to Email
The KolibriSensor™ from SPECS represents a new quartz sensor on the market that excels in its performance and its reliability. It is based on a symmetrical length extension resonator. The high resonance frequency of 1 MHz and the good signal-to-noise ratio allows for faster data acquisition in scanning microscopy and force spectroscopy. Oscillation amplitudes may be set below 20 pm. High stiffness prevents snap-in and the low noise floor continues to give a good frequency shift signal. The tip of the KolibriSensor™ has a separate contact, guaranteeing clean separation of the signals from the tunneling tip and from the quartz force sensor. The new Tyto scan head from SPECS is a milestone in the technology of Scanning Probe Microscopy. The modular design allows for various experimental configurations and for the usage of different sensors. A kinematic mount is used for both the sample and sensor and this feature is combined with accurate position sensors. For the first time, this enables different sensors to access identical locations on a sample and to repeat the procedure after successive sample preparation steps. This opens up opportunities for new experiments and will advance the research of surfaces at the nanometer scale. Additional features of the Tyto scan head are: Four openings for in-situ evaporation, two specular ports for simultaneous optical experiments, and large front openings and windows situated on each side of the body and at the back for broad visual inspection of the sample and sensor. Various sample receptors can be installed in the Tyto scan head, with four or twelve electronic contacts to the sample. Optional extra features include a calibrated Cernox temperature sensor located directly under the sample plate, and a small heater to control the sample temperature to within 1 mK.