AFM-TEM holder: New In-situ Holder from Nanofactory Instruments and Gatan

In August 2005, Nanofactory Instruments and Gatan, Inc. introduced a new in-situ probing holder: the AFM-TEM system SA2000, the first commercial Atomic Force Microscope (AFM) system designed to operate inside the TEM. The first unit is scheduled for installation in December 2005.

The AFM-TEM system encompasses the original design of the force sensor technology developed by Nanofactory Instruments and Chalmers University (Sweden). The miniaturized AFM system is built in the tip of the TEM holder and provides a unique opportunity to use AFM and TEM analysis simultaneously in a single experiment. The AFM-TEM system is the ultimate tool for in-situ force measurements combined with real-time high resolution TEM imaging. It operates in the nano-Newton (nN) range for force measurements and is ideally suited for acquiring force-displacement data from objects just a few nm in size, such as nanotubes or catalytic particles. The system is bundled with user-friendly acquisition software making AFM imaging and in-situ mechanical experiments inside the TEM quick and easy. The new AFM-TEM system can also be upgraded to deliver dual AFM/STM capability. This advanced option provides the investigator with state-of-the-art technology to probe individual nanostructures in in-situ electro-mechanical experiments.

Benefits/Applications

• In-situ force measurement capabilities
• Characterization of mechanical properties of thin films and nanostructures
• Nanomanipulation and nanomechanics at the sub-nanometer scale
• Combined AFM and HRTEM imaging
• Dual AFM/STM capability
• Imaging and observation of stress/strain-induced structural changes
• Quantitative analysis of AFM data

Advantages

• Accurate force measurements for mechanical characterization of nanostructures
• Simultaneous electro-mechanical characterization based on combined
AFM/STM operation
• Automatic force-displacement, force-time, I-V curves acquisition
• Live high-resolution imaging of AFM tip geometry and actual contact area
• Sub-nanometer control of sample positioning and displacements
• Sample alignment and coarse positioning in increments of several microns up to a millimeter
• Compact design of force sensor and low-noise electronics based on SPM technology

Upgrade/compatibility
• SA2000 AFM-TEM system shares the same electronics as the ST1000 TEM-STM system designed for in situ electrical measurements and the SA2000.N TEM-Nanoindentor system for the in-situ indentation. Either holder can be added to a pre-installed unit to upgrade the system to a multi-tasking system capable of performing electro-mechanical nanocharacterization.

For complete information on the new SA2000 AFM-TEM system, please click here or contact your local Gatan Sales office.