| Park has innovated AFM technology
in industry's only True Non-Contact ModeTM that minimizes tip degradation,
keeps sample free from damage, and prolongs high-resolution imaging
throughout the AFM scan. The True Non-Contact ModeTM is made possible
by Park AFM with the development of Crosstalk Elimination, and
high force Z-scanner with large Z-servo bandwidth. With the True
Non-Contact ModeTM, Park AFM produces the most accurate and reproducible
AFM results.
Park AFM employs industry leading fast Z-servo speed:
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Z-scanner bandwidth of more than 9 kHz, or Z-servo speed of
more than 62 mm/sec tip velocity
Optimized Z servo speed with
minimal Z scan mass (PSPD and tip)
Fast DSP servo control without
time delay
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Park's high speed Z-servo with minimal Z scan mass and fast DSP servo control keeps the probe within the narrow range of the attractive force enabling non-contact mode AFM in ambient atmosphere.
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True Non-Contact ModeTM is Now a Reality
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The benefits and the superiority of non-contact mode atomic force
microscopy is well recognized: no tip wear, no sample damage, and
maintenance of high resolution imaging, and high accuracy of AFM
measurement. However, only Park Systems has achieved what it calls
True Non-Contact ModeTM . It is a powerful technology
that enables AFM users to image and measure samples without touching
them. In True Non-Contact ModeTM, the tip-sample distance
is successfully maintained at a few nanometers in the
net attractive regime of inter-atomic force
The small amplitude of tip oscillation minimizes
the tip-sample interaction,
resulting in superb tip preservation and negligible sample modification.
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True Non-Contact ModeTM versus Tapping |
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Longer Tip Life and Less Sample Damage by Park's True Non-Contact Mode TM
The sharp end of an AFM tip is so brittle
that once it touches a sample, it becomes instantly blunt, it limits
the resolution of an AFM, and it reduces the quality of the image.
For softer samples, the tip will damage the sample and also result
in inaccuracies of sample height measurements. Consequently, preserving
tip integrity enables consistent high resolution and accurate data.
True Non-Contact ModeTM of Park AFM superbly preserves the tip,
resulting in much
longer tip life and less sample damage.
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The two images on the
above right shows no tip wear after taking 20 images of the sample
on the left using Park AFM with True Non-Contact ModeTM. The sample
image (shown in 1:1 aspect ratio), is an unprocessed raw data of
a shallow trench isolation by Park AFM; the depth is further confirmed
utilizing a scanning electron microscope (SEM). |
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AFM
Technology 
True Non-Contact Mode
