Scanned Probe Microscopy history

It is noteworthy that prior to the advent of scanning probe microscopy electrochemically driven reconstruction phenomena had been identified and studied using traditional macroscopic electrochemical measurements [210,211], However, STM studies have provided insight as to the various atomistic processes involved in the phase transition between the reconstructed and unreconstructed state and promise to provide an understanding of the macroscopically observed kinetics. An excellent example is provided by the structural evolution of the Au(lOO) surface as a function of potential and sample history [210,211,216-223], Flame annealing of a freshly elec-tropolished surface results in the thermally induced formation of a dense hexagonal close-packed reconstructed phase referred to as Au(100)-(hex). For carefully annealed crystals a single domain of the reconstructed phase... 

The increased use of optical, electron, and scanning probe microscopies applied to polymer research has resulted from the widespread acceptance of these techniques combined with the need for higher performance and lower cost polymer materials. It is well known that the structures present in a polymer reflect the process variables and further that they greatly influence the physical and mechanical properties. Thus, the properties of polymer materials are influenced by their chemical composition, process history, and the resulting morphology. Morphological study involves two aspects prior to the study itself selection of instrumental techniques and development of specimen preparation methods. Structural observations must be correlated with the properties of the material in order to develop an understanding of the material. A major issue in the application of... 

D. Baird, A. Shew, Probing the history of scanning tunneling microscopy, in D. Baird, A. Nordmann, J. Schummer (Eds.), Discovering the Nanoscale, lOS Press, Amsterdam, 2004. 

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