Improving the Lateral Resolution of Quartz Tuning Fork-Based Sensors in Liquid by Integrating Commercial AFM Tips into the Fiber End

Gonzalez Claramonte, LauraMartínez-Martín, DavidOtero Díaz, JorgeJosé de Pablo, PedroPuig i Vidal, ManuelGómez-Herrero, Julio2015-09-082015-09-082015-01-141424-8220https://hdl.handle.net/2445/66840The use of quartz tuning fork sensors as probes for scanning probe microscopy is growing in popularity. Working in shear mode, some methods achieve a lateral resolution comparable with that obtained with standard cantilevered probes, but only in experiments conducted in air or vacuum. Here, we report a method to produce and use commercial AFM tips in electrically driven quartz tuning fork sensors operating in shear mode in a liquid environment. The process is based on attaching a standard AFM tip to the end of a fiber probe which has previously been sharpened. Only the end of the probe is immersed in the buffer solution during imaging. The lateral resolution achieved is about 6 times higher than that of the etched microfiber on its own.10 p.application/pdfengcc-by (c) Gonzalez Claramonte, Laura et al., 2015http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/esMicroscòpia de força atòmicaMicroscòpia electrònica d'escombratgeAtomic force microscopyScanning electron microscopyImproving the Lateral Resolution of Quartz Tuning Fork-Based Sensors in Liquid by Integrating Commercial AFM Tips into the Fiber Endinfo:eu-repo/semantics/article6506902015-09-08info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess25594596