We present the design and performance of an ambient-pressure atomic force microscope (AP-AFM) that allows AFM measurements using the laser deflection technique in a highly controlled environment from ultra-high vacuum (UHV) up to 1 bar with various gases. While the UHV of the AP-AFM system is obtained by a combination of turbo-molecular and ion pumps, for the higher-pressure studies, the ambient-pressure chamber is isolated from the pumps and high-purity gases are dosed via a leak valve from a gas manifold. The AP-AFM system, therefore, provides versatile AFM techniques, including the measurement of topography, friction and local conductance mapping, and force spectroscopy in a highly controlled environment with pressures ranging from UHV up to atmospheric pressure. Atomically resolved stick–slip images and force spectroscopy of highly ordered pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) at variable pressure conditions are presented to demonstrate the performance of the AP-AFM system. Force spectroscopy results of vacuum-cleaved HOPG, followed by exposure to lab air, oxygen, and methane show that adhesion between the AFM tip and the HOPG depends significantly on the exposed gas and pressure. Our results show that the deposition of airborne hydrocarbon impurities at ambient conditions leads to a significant change in adhesion force, implying that the wettability of the HOPG surface depends on the environment and the pressure.
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October 2018
Research Article|
October 15 2018
Ambient-pressure atomic force microscope with variable pressure from ultra-high vacuum up to one bar
Joong Il Jake Choi
;
Joong Il Jake Choi
1
Graduate School of EEWS and Department of Chemistry, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)
, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
2
Center for Nanomaterials and Chemical Reactions, Institute for Basic Science
, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
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Jeong Jin Kim
;
Jeong Jin Kim
2
Center for Nanomaterials and Chemical Reactions, Institute for Basic Science
, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
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Wooseok Oh;
Wooseok Oh
1
Graduate School of EEWS and Department of Chemistry, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)
, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
2
Center for Nanomaterials and Chemical Reactions, Institute for Basic Science
, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
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Won Hui Doh;
Won Hui Doh
2
Center for Nanomaterials and Chemical Reactions, Institute for Basic Science
, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
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Jeong Young Park
Jeong Young Park
a)
1
Graduate School of EEWS and Department of Chemistry, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)
, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
2
Center for Nanomaterials and Chemical Reactions, Institute for Basic Science
, Daejeon 34141, South Korea
a)Author to whom correspondence should be addressed: jeongypark@kaist.ac.kr
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a)Author to whom correspondence should be addressed: jeongypark@kaist.ac.kr
Rev. Sci. Instrum. 89, 103701 (2018)
Article history
Received:
May 29 2018
Accepted:
September 21 2018
Citation
Joong Il Jake Choi, Jeong Jin Kim, Wooseok Oh, Won Hui Doh, Jeong Young Park; Ambient-pressure atomic force microscope with variable pressure from ultra-high vacuum up to one bar. Rev. Sci. Instrum. 1 October 2018; 89 (10): 103701. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5042076
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