CoreAFM: Research-Grade AFM Platform with Application Modularity

Over the past 30 years of innovation and development, atomic force microscopy (AFM) has become a complicated alphabet soup of modes. There are currently dozens of acronyms that describe a myriad of AFM-based techniques for the exploration of various surface properties including topography, electrical/optical/magnetic/mechanical properties, lithography, and force spectroscopy [1]. The wide variety and complexity of AFM modes can be confusing, especially to newcomers to the technology. Furthermore, many research-grade AFMs come equipped with advanced functionalities, often including capabilities that are superfluous and not useful to the user wishing to conduct a specific type of experiment. Nanosurf’s CoreAFM is a new platform designed to provide all the power of a research-level AFM but with a “build your own” approach to application modularity. It is based on a compact single-unit design with AFM features such as a flexure-guided scanner, digital controller, air-flow protection, and low-noise force detection. The instrument has a lateral maximum scan range of 100 µm and a vertical maximum scan range of 12 µm. While suiting the needs of high-end research, this platform also addresses beginners in the field with a tiered approach to functionality in an easy-to-understand organization centered around recognizable visual icons for quick identification.