These tools are designed to offer ease of use and superior reliability for high-throughput R&D or quality control applications.
The AFM is a type of the Scanning Probe Microscope (SPM) that scan the surface of a sample using a sharp tip typically with a radius of a few nanometers (1 nanometer = 1/1,000,000 millimeter). The AFM can provide both high-resolution visualization of surface morphology and simultaneous mapping of various other physical properties at the nanoscale. Therefore, the AFM is intensively used for scientific research and development, as well as quality control across a wide range of industrial fields, such as examining battery materials, semiconductors, polymers, living organisms, etc.
Conventional AFM operation could be quite time consuming and demanding. The workflow contains some mandatory steps such as loading a tiny cantilever (approximately 1 mm wide) manually with a tweezer to the target location, determining the right interaction force between the tip and the sample as well as adjusting the scan speed, all of which may involve back and forth trials. As a result, the overall throughput from the start of tool setup to the end of data acquisition was relatively low. In addition, both quality and reliability of acquired AFM data can vary significantly from person to person since selecting an appropriate type of cantilevers and optimizing an array of imaging parameters are highly dependent on operator's experience and skill levels.
The AFM100 and AFM100 Plus developed by
The key benefits of these products are as follows
Improved usability, reliability, and total throughput
To make the cantilever loading/unloading much easier, a newly developed premounted cantilever 1 has been adopted and it can significantly improve the usability. In addition, these instruments come with an autopilot function that automatically optimizes measurement parameters, controls the interaction force between the tip and the sample, and adjusts the scan speed, thus reducing human errors. Therefore, reliable and consistent data acquisition can be readily realized. The system also supports multi-point measurement with a recipe, which enables automated data collection and storage throughout the entire measurement process just by a single click, thus the total throughput can be dramatically increased.
Enhanced correlation with
The optional AFM marking function uses
Scalable and durable
The system comes with the lifetime free download of new control software and a self-checking function that can automatically diagnose the root cause of malfunctions as standard, contributing to long service life for users. This allows users to keep their equipment up-to-date and performing at its highest level.
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