qp-SCONT - NANOSENSORS™

Cantilever data:

Property	Nominal Value	Specified Range
Resonance Frequency [kHz]	11	8 - 13
Force Constant [N/m]	0.01	0.006 - 0.015
Length [µm]	125	120 - 130
Mean Width [µm]	34	32 - 36
Thickness [nm]	350	320 - 380

Order codes and shipping units:

Order Code	AFM probes per pack
qp-SCONT-10	10
qp-SCONT-20	20
qp-SCONT-50	50

Special handling information for NANOSENSORS™ uniqprobes

Due to their unique geometry the tips of the uniqprobes are more susceptible to tip damage by electrostatic discharge (ESD) than other Silicon-SPM-Probes.

Electric fields near the probe chip may lead to field evaporation which can blunt the tip apex of the probe tip. Therefore the NANOSENSORS™ uniqprobes are shipped in specially designed ESD-safe chip carriers.

NANOSENSORS™ recommends to their customers to take appropriate precautions to avoid tip damage due to electrostatic discharge when handling the probes. This can for example be done by using anti-electrostatic mats, wrist bands and tweezers.

uniqprobe AFM tip side view

uniqprobe AFM tip apex

350nm thin uniqprobe AFM cantilever side view

NANOSENSORS™ uniqprobe AFM Probes series

uniqprobe™ uniform quality SPM probe – Soft Contact mode

The NANOSENSORS™ uniqprobe combines the well-known features of the other NANOSENSORS™ AFM probe series such as high application versatility and compatibility with most commercial SPMs with the additional advantage of a strongly reduced dispersion of force constant and resonance frequency. The unsurpassed uniformity of the mechanical characteristics of the uniqprobe series is particularly important for applications, where a large number of AFM probes with known and near identical force constants or resonance frequencies are needed. The sensors of the uniqprobe series are especially adapted for molecular biology, biophysics and quantitative nano-mechanical studies.

The reflective gold coating deposited on the detector side of the AFM cantilever covers only the free end above where the AFM tip is located. Main advantages of the uniqprobe coating are considerably less AFM cantilever bending and reduced drift particularly for measurements in liquid environments.

NANOSENSORS™ qp-SCONT AFM probes are designed for contact mode AFM imaging in air or liquid environments. The SCONT type features a very low force constant offering the possibility of contact mode measurements on soft biological materials with high sensitivity.

The AFM probe offers unique features:

small dispersion of force constant and resonance frequency
typical AFM tip height 7µm
typical AFM tip radius of curvature smaller than 10nm
stress free AFM cantilevers with considerably less bending
AFM tip and AFM cantilevers are made of a quartz-like material
reduced drift for applications in liquid environments
AFM tip repositioning accuracy of better than ± 8 µm (in combination with Alignment Chip)
chemically inert

This AFM probe features alignment grooves on the back side of the holder chip. These grooves fit to the NANOSENSORS Alignment Chip.

How to optimize AFM scanning parameters:

Yucheng Yang, Kaikui Xu, Luke N. Holtzman, Kristyna Yang, Kenji Watanabe, Takashi Taniguchi, James Hone, Katayun Barmak and Matthew R. Rosenberger
Atomic Defect Quantification by Lateral Force Microscopy
ACS Nano 2024, 18, 9, 6887-6895
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.3c07405

Irene C. Turnbull and Angelo Gaitas
Characterizing induced pluripotent stem cells and derived cardiomyocytes: insights from nano scale mass measurements and mechanical properties
Nanoscale Advances, 2024, 6, 1059-1064
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1039/D3NA00727H

Eleni Dalaka, Joseph S. Hill, Jonathan H. H. Booth, Anna Popczyk, Stefan R. Pulver, Malte C. Gather and Marcel Schubert
Deformable microlaser force sensing
Light: Science & Applications (2024) 13:129
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-024-01471-9

Perrine Verdys, Javier Rey Barroso, Adeline Girel, Joseph Vermeil, Martin Bergert, Thibaut Sanchez, Arnaud Métais, Thomas Mangeat, Elisabeth Bellard, Claire Bigot, Catherine Astarie-Dequeker, Arnaud Labrousse, Jean-Philippe Girard, Isabelle Maridonneau-Parini, Christel Vérollet, Frédéric Lagarrigue, Alba Diz-Muñoz, Julien Heuvingh, Matthieu Piel, Olivia du Roure, Véronique Le Cabec, Sébastien Carréno and Renaud Poincloux
Ezrin, radixin, and moesin are dispensable for macrophage migration and cellular cortex mechanics
EMBO Journal (2024)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s44318-024-00173-7

Irene C. Turnbull, Apratim Bajpai, Katherine B. Jankowski and Angelo Gaitas
Single-Cell Analysis of Contractile Forces in iPSC-Derived Cardiomyocytes: Paving the Way for Precision Medicine in Cardiovascular Disease
International Journal of Molecular Sciences 2023, 24(17)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241713416

Min Ye, Yiran Shan, Bingchuan Lu, Hao Luo, Binhan Li, Yanmei Zhang, Zixuan Wang, Yuzhi Guo, Liliang Ouyang, Jin Gu, Zhuo Xiong and Ting Zhang
Creating a semi-opened micro-cavity ovary through sacrificial microspheres as an in vitro model for discovering the potential effect of ovarian toxic agents
Bioactive Materials, Volume 26, August 2023, Pages 216-230
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bioactmat.2023.02.029

Dr. Hassiba Smida, François-Xavier Lefèvre, Dr. Christine Thobie-Gautier, Dr. Mohammed Boujtita, Dr. Catarina M. Paquete and Dr. Estelle Lebègue
Single Electrochemical Impacts of Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 Bacteria for Living Cells Adsorption onto a Polarized Ultramicroelectrode Surface
ChemElectroChem, Volume 10, Issue 1, January 2, 2023, e202200906
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/celc.202200906

Shotaro Tanaka and Fumio Nakamura
Exploring the Bio-Functional Breaking Point of Living Tissue Subjected to External Physical Pressure
Journal of Robotics and Mechatronics Vol.34 No.2, 2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.20965/jrm.2022.p0319

Arnaud Millet
A Universal Model for the Log-Normal Distribution of Elasticity in Polymeric Gels and Its Relevance to Mechanical Signature of Biological Tissues
Biology 2021, 10(1), 64
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/biology10010064

Johannes Rheinlaender, Andrea Dimitracopoulos, Bernhard Wallmeyer, Nils M. Kronenberg, Kevin J. Chalut, Malte C. Gather, Timo Betz, Guillaume Charras, and Kristian Franze
Cortical cell stiffness is independent of substrate mechanics
Nature Materials volume 19, pages 1019–1025 (2020)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-020-0684-x

M. Rigby, M. Anthonisen, X. Y. Chua, A. Kaplan, A. E. Fournier and P. Grütter
Building an artificial neural network with neurons
AIP Advances 9, 075009 (2019)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5086873

Joanna Dziadkowiec, Bahareh Zareeipolgardani, Dag Kristian Dysthe and Anja Røyne
Nucleation in confinement generates long-range repulsion between rough calcite surfaces
Nature Scientific Reports volume 9, Article number: 8948 (2019)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-45163-6

Chao-Hung Chang, Hsiao-Hui Lee and Chau-Hwang Lee
Substrate properties modulate cell membrane roughness by way of actin filaments
nature Scientific Reports volume 7, Article number: 9068 (2017)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-09618-y

Tânia Lourenço, Joana Paes de Faria, Christian A. Bippes, João Maia, José A. Lopes-da-Silva, João B. Relvas and Mário Grãos
Modulation of oligodendrocyte differentiation and maturation by combined biochemical and mechanical cues
nature Scientific Reports volume 6, Article number: 21563 (2016)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/srep21563

Venkata Arun Timmaraju, Priyanka A. S. Theophilus, Kunthavai Balasubramanian, Shafiq Shakih, David F. Luecke and Eva Sapi
Biofilm formation by Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato
FEMS Microbiology Letters, Volume 362, Issue 15, August 2015, fnv120
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/femsle/fnv120

James W. Foster, Roanne R. Jones, Christian A. Bippes, Ricardo M. Gouveia and Che J. Connon
Differential nuclear expression of Yap in basal epithelial cells across the cornea and substrates of differing stiffness
Experimental Eye Research, Volume 127, October 2014, Pages 37-41
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.exer.2014.06.020