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PointProbe® Plus Rotated Tip Contact Mode - Reflex Coating

The PointProbe® Plus (PPP) combines high application versatility and compatibility with most commercial SPMs. The typical AFM tip radius of less than 7 nm and the minimized variation in AFM tip shape provide reproducible images and enhanced resolution.

NANOSENSORS™ PPP-CONTR AFM probes are designed for contact mode (repulsive mode) AFM imaging. This AFM probe can also be used for force-distance spectroscopy mode or pulsed force mode (PFM). The CONTR type is optimized for high sensitivity due to a low force constant.

For certain applications the rotated PointProbe® Plus Tip offers more symmetric imaging. The rotated AFM tip shape is identical to the classic AFM tip shape but it is rotated by 180° degrees with respect to the AFM cantilever beam direction.

The AFM probe offers unique features:

• guaranteed AFM tip radius of curvature < 10 nm
• AFM tip height 10 - 15 µm
• highly doped silicon to dissipate static charge
• high mechanical Q-factor for high sensitivity

The reflective coating is an approximately 30 nm thick aluminum coating on the detector side of the AFM cantilever which enhances the reflectivity of the laser beam by a factor of about 2.5. Furthermore it prevents light from interfering within the AFM cantilever. As the coating is nearly stress-free the bending of the AFM cantilever due to stress is less than 2 degrees.