Tj. Senden et Cj. Drummond, SURFACE-CHEMISTRY AND TIP SAMPLE INTERACTIONS IN ATOMIC-FORCE MICROSCOPY, Colloids and surfaces. A, Physicochemical and engineering aspects, 94(1), 1995, pp. 29-51
Microfabricated silicon nitride cantilevers with integral tips are com
monly employed in atomic force microscopy. The link between surface ch
emistry, including surface group acid-base dissociation and counterion
complexation, and tip-sample interaction in aqueous electrolyte solut
ion is examined. Silicon nitride tip interaction with ''flat plate'' s
amples of both muscovite mica and silicon nitride as a function of aqu
eous solution pH and electrolyte concentration is investigated. The lo
ng-range component of the interaction is normalized with respect to an
effective tip radius, and as a result electrical double layer and van
der Waals interactions can be discussed quantitatively. Microfracture
and tribochemical tip wear is also discussed with reference to atomic
force microscope contact mode imaging. Non-retarded Hamaker constants
are reported for a range of silicon nitride, silica, silicon and musc
ovite mica systems.