THE ROLE OF ADHESION IN TAPPING-MODE ATOMIC-FORCE MICROSCOPY

The equation of motion of the cantilever of an atomic force microscope (AFM) operating in the tapping mode in the presence of tip-sample adh esion modeled by the JKR theory is solved self-consistently. The vibra tion of the cantilever is discussed in terms of the parameters charact erizing the properties of the cantilever, tip, and sample. A compariso n with the experimental phase-shifts as a function of the setpoint rep orted by Magonov et al. is presented and sample indentation and tip-sa mple force and pressure are analyzed.