Elastic moduli sapphire

Figure 13.5(d) presents experimental stiffness measurements using differential UFM for three high modulus surfaces sapphire, Si(100) and LiF(lOO) (Dinelli et al. 2000b). The samples were probed with the same silicon tip on a V-shaped cantilever (nominally cantilever stiffness was kc - 2.8 nN nm 1,and radius of curvature R = 10 nm). The surface RMS roughness of the surfaces was less than 0.2 nm over a few square micrometres for all three samples. The relative difference between the three sets of data reveals that the elastic properties of these three materials can be distinguished by differential UFM the relative independence of the applied force may indicate the fact that the tip had been flattened by extended contact with such hard samples. 

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