Microscopy of solid surfaces

Ultrafast Multiphoton Photoemission Microscopy of Solid Surfaces in Real and Reciprocal Space... 

Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM). The AFM provides quantitative morpholographic images of solid surfaces at a nanometer scale. It uses a sharp tip scanned over the sample surface to sense attractive or repulsive forces between the tip and the surface. The microscopic image of the surface is obtained as a surface, representing the locus of points of constant force between the tip and the sample. 

Basic information needed to understand the physical and chemical properties of solid surfaces and thin solid films include the atomic structures and the compositional variations across the surface and interface layers. The atomic structures can be studied with microscopies and with surface sensitive diffraction and particle scattering techniques. Compositions of surfaces and thin films can be studied with the atom-probe FIM. In general, however, compositional analyses are mostly done with surface sensitive macroscopic techniques, such as auger electron... 

AFM microscopy is more suited for the morphological study of solid surfaces, such as metallic plates with variable roughness therefore, it is extremely helpful when used in combination with the SERS investigation. In this way, the SERS... 

H Shiku, Y Hara, T Takeda, T Matsue, I Uchida. Microfabrication and characterization of solid surfaces patterned with enzymes or antigen-antibodies by scanning electrochemical microscopy. In G Jerkiewiecz, MP Soriaga, K Uosaki, A Wieckowski, eds. Solid-Liquid Electrochemical Interfaces. Washington, DC ACS, 1997, pp 202-209. 

The titania particles precipitate under reaction conditions very similar to those of the silica systems discussed earlier. A critical nucleation concentration of 1.5-3 times [C]eq is measured. This low supersaturation level is not reached until very late in the precipitation reaction (Figure 3). The rate of loss of soluble titania is also independent of the presence of solid surface area. Finally, on the basis of measures of particle surface potentials, nuclei of sizes less than about 20 nm are expected to be unstable and to rapidly aggregate. These results again indicate that during the precipitation of titania, nucleation may occur over much of the reaction period and final particle sizes may be determined by the aggregation of primary particles. These conclusions are supported by the transmission electron microscopy work of Diaz-Gomaz et al. (30). 

In atomic force microscopy (AFM) solid surfaces (this includes also molecular mono- and multilayers on solid supports in the form of Langmuir-Blodgett (or LB) films) are scanned at constant van der Waals forces in the region of 10 9-10 7 N of force. This is done point by point and line by line. A computer processes the images which consist of the data points. 

R. Gomer. Recent Applications of Field Emission Microscopy. In R. Vanselow, editor. Chemistry and Physics of Solid Surfaces, Volume 2. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, 1979. 

F. Ogletree and M. Salmerdn. Scanning Tunneling Microscopy and the Atomic Structure of Solid Surfaces, Prog. Solid State Chem. 20 235 (1990). 

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