Electrical Atomic Force Microscopy For Nanoelectronics

The tremendous impact of electronic devices on our lives is the result of continuous improvements of the billions of nanoelectronic components inside integrated circuits (ICs). However, ultra-scaled semiconductor devices require nanometer control of the many parameters essential for their fabrication. Through the years, this created a strong alliance between microscopy techniques and IC manufacturing. This book reviews the latest progress in IC devices, with emphasis on the impact of electrical atomic force microscopy (AFM) techniques for their development. The operation principles of many techniques are introduced, and the associated metrology challenges described. Blending the expertise of industrial specialists and academic researchers, the chapters are dedicated to various AFM methods and their impact on the development of emerging nanoelectronic devices. The goal is to introduce the major electrical AFM methods, following the journey that has seen our lives changed by the advent of ubiquitous nanoelectronics devices, and has extended our capability to sense matter on a scale previously inaccessible.

This volume will be devoted to the technical aspects of electrical and electromechanical SPM probes and SPM imaging on the limits of resolution, thus providing technical introduction into the field. This volume will also address the fundamental physical phenomena underpinning the imaging mechanism of SPMs.

The first book to summarize the applications of CAFM as the most important method in the study of electronic properties of materials and devices at the nanoscale. To provide a global perspective, the chapters are written by leading researchers and application scientists from all over the world and cover novel strategies, configurations and setups where new information will be obtained with the help of CAFM. With its substantial content and logical structure, this is a valuable reference for researchers working with CAFM or planning to use it in their own fields of research.

Scanning Probe Microscopy (SPM) is the enabling tool for nano(bio)technology, which has opened new vistas in many interdisciplinary research areas. Concomitant with the developments in SPM instrumentation and techniques are new and previously unthought-of opportunities in materials nanofabrication and characterisation. In particular, the developments in addressing and manipulating matter at the level of single atoms or molecules, and studies of biological materials (e.g. live cells, or cell membranes) result in new and exciting discoveries. The rising importance of SPM demands a concise treatment in the form of a book which is accessible to interdisciplinary practitioners. This book highlights recent advances in the field of SPM with sufficient depth and breadth to provide an intellectually stimulating overview of the current state of the art. The book is based on a set of carefully selected original works from renowned contributors on topics that range from atom technology, scanning tunneling spectroscopy of self-assembled nanostructures, SPM probe fabrication, scanning force microscopy applications in biology and materials science down to the single molecule level, novel scanning probe techniques, and nanolithography. The variety of topics underlines the strong interdisciplinary character of SPM related research and the combined expertise of the contributors gives us a unique opportunity to discuss possible future trends in SPM related research. This makes the book not merely a collection of already published material but an enlightening insight into cutting edge research and global SPM research trends.

Since 1995, the noncontact atomic force microscope (NC-AFM) has achieved remarkable progress. Based on nanomechanical methods, the NC-AFM detects the weak attractive force between the tip of a cantilever and a sample surface. This method has the following characteristics: it has true atomic resolution; it can measure atomic force interactions, i.e. it can be used in so-called atomic force spectroscopy (AFS); it can also be used to study insulators; and it can measure mechanical responses such as elastic deformation. This is the first book that deals with all of the emerging NC-AFM issues.

Since the original publication of Noncontact Atomic Force Microscopy in 2002, the noncontact atomic force microscope (NC-AFM) has achieved remarkable progress. This second treatment deals with the following outstanding recent results obtained with atomic resolution since then: force spectroscopy and mapping with atomic resolution; tuning fork; atomic manipulation; magnetic exchange force microscopy; atomic and molecular imaging in liquids; and other new technologies. These results and technologies are now helping evolve NC-AFM toward practical tools for characterization and manipulation of individual atoms/molecules and nanostructures with atomic/subatomic resolution. Therefore, the book exemplifies how NC-AFM has become a crucial tool for the expanding fields of nanoscience and nanotechnology.

This book focuses primarily on the atomic force microscope and serves as a reference for students, postdocs, and researchers using atomic force microscopes for the first time. In addition, this book can serve as the primary text for a semester-long introductory course in atomic force microscopy. There are a few algebra-based mathematical relationships included in the book that describe the mechanical properties, behaviors, and intermolecular forces associated with probes used in atomic force microscopy. Relevant figures, tables, and illustrations also appear in each chapter in an effort to provide additional information and points of interest. This book includes suggested laboratory investigations that provide opportunities to explore the versatility of the atomic force microscope. These laboratory exercises include opportunities for experimenters to explore force curves, surface roughness, friction loops, conductivity imaging, and phase imaging.

This timely book introduces the fundamental measurement concepts of the rapidly evolving atomic force microscopy (AFM) techniques for electrical characterization (EFM). It describes experimental approaches and setups, as well as challenges to overcome, and it also provides a wide range of real-world examples illustrating the method. This comprehensive guide for EFM techniques and their applications is an excellent reference for those working on microscopy in different fields, making the methods more accessible to a wider audience and enabling readers to explore the numerous possibilities of electrical techniques as research tools.