SIMULATIONS OF THE EFFECTS OF TIP APEX GEOMETRIES ON ATOMIC-FORCE MICROSCOPY IMAGES

Simulation works on the effects of tip apex geometries on atomic force microscopy (AFM) images were examined. Tips and samples employed in t hose simulations were mostly made of a single component. Short-range i nteratomic potentials such as Lennard-Jones and Morse were used. With these potentials, it was found that a single atom tip (a tip with an a tom protruding at its apex) is necessary for obtaining true atomic res olution. In many cases flat tip geometries (tips with multiple atoms a t their apexes) produce various images that do not correspond to the s urface atom arrangements, which may lead to various faulty AFM image i nterpretations.