Owing to a number of unique advantages, the scanning tunneling microsc
ope (STM) is widely used for the diagnosis of surfaces in micro- and n
anotechnologies. The author gives an analysis of the advantages and sh
ortcomings of the STM method based upon the four years of experience u
sing it for study, in air, of surfaces of metals and semiconductors th
at were subjected to a variety of effects: ion- and laser-beam modific
ation and chemical and mechanical treatment. instrumental distortions
of the STM surface images and computer-aided techniques for the remova
l of these distortions have been discussed, methods for calibration of
STM translators and the specifics of operating the STM in air have be
en described. A method for high-resolution visualization of the distri
bution of electronic properties on the surface of ion-implanted laser-
beam annealed silicon has been proposed.