Low-temperature conductive tip atomic force microscope for carbon nanotube probing and manipulation

The authors describe conductive tip atomic force microscope used for imaging carbon nanotubes at low temperatures. The instrument allows them to measure the tip-nanotube conductance while performing the topographic scan of the nanotubes on a nonconductive $SiO2$ substrate. For nanotubes weakly coupled to the contacting electrode, they observe the Coulomb blockade pattern in the tip-nanotube conductance. They reversibly modified the conductance pattern by applying the tip pressure.