Classification of scanning probe microscopies - (Technical report)

In the last few years scanning probe microscopy techniques have gained sign ificant importance in a variety of different research fields in science and technology. A rapid development, stimulated by the invention of the scanni ng tunneling microscope in 1981 and still proceeding at a high pace, has br ought about a number of new techniques belonging to this group of surface a nalytical methods. The large potential of scanning probe microscopes is doc umented by over 1000 publications per year. Due to the fact that a number o f different terms and acronyms exist, which are partially used for identica l techniques and which are sometimes confusing, this article is aimed at cl assification and at an overview on the analytically most important techniqu es with clarification of common terms. Emphasis will be put on analytical e valuation of scanning tunneling and scanning force microscopy, as up to now these techniques have gained the highest importance for analytical applica tions.