Lead zirconate titanate cantilever for noncontact atomic force microscopy

Noncontact atomic force microscopy with frequency modulation detection is a promising technique for surface observation with true atomic resolution. T he piezoelectric material itself can be an actuator and sensor of the oscil lating probe simultaneously, without the need for additional electro-mechan ical transducers or other measurement systems. A vertical resolution of 0.0 1 nm rms has been achieved using a microfabricated cantilever with lend zir conate titanate thin film in noncontact mode frequency modulation detection . The cantilever also has a sharpened pyramidal stylus with a radius of abo ut 10 nm for noncontact atomic force microscopy. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.