Electrostatic force microscopy: principles and some applications to semiconductors

Girard, P.

doi:10.1088/0957-4484/12/4/321

Cited by 268 publications

(222 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…Non-contact scanning probe microscopy (SPM), such as electrostatic force microscopy (EFM), 9 dielectric force microscopy (DFM), 10 and Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM), 11,12 have been extensively applied to characterize local electronic properties of diverse nanomaterials. [10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17] In a non-contact mode, the probe is lifted at a constant height above the surface of interest, where long-range forces are detected.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Direct probing of electron and hole trapping into nano-floating-gate in organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories

Cui

Wang

Chen

et al. 2015

Applied Physics Letters

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Electron and hole trapping into the nano-floating-gate of a pentacene-based organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memory is directly probed by Kelvin probe force microscopy. The probing is straightforward and non-destructive. The measured surface potential change can quantitatively profile the charge trapping, and the surface characterization results are in good accord with the corresponding device behavior. Both electrons and holes can be trapped into the nano-floating-gate, with a preference of electron trapping than hole trapping. The trapped charge quantity has an approximately linear relation with the programming/erasing gate bias, indicating that the charge trapping in the device is a field-controlled process.

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mentioning

confidence: 99%

Direct probing of electron and hole trapping into nano-floating-gate in organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories

Cui

Wang

Chen

et al. 2015

Applied Physics Letters

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“…KPFM has been particularly useful for characterizing materials and devices ranging from metals, 1 semiconductors, 8,9 and ferroelectrics, 10,11 to self-assembled monolayers, 12 polymers, 13 and biomolecules. 14,15 The continued success of KPFM necessitates both the advancement of the technique in terms of accuracy and resolution 16,17 across all imaging environments, 18,19 as well as improved capabilities to distinguish and correlate different electronic parameters (i.e., dielectric properties, [20][21][22][23] dissipation 24,25 ) beyond that currently attainable with conventional KPFM.…”

Section: Band Excitation Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy Utilizing Photmentioning

confidence: 99%

Band excitation Kelvin probe force microscopy utilizing photothermal excitation

Collins

Jesse

Balke

et al. 2015

Applied Physics Letters

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A multifrequency open loop Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) approach utilizing photothermal as opposed to electrical excitation is developed. Photothermal band excitation (PthBE)-KPFM is implemented here in a grid mode on a model test sample comprising a metal-insulator junction with local charge-patterned regions. Unlike the previously described open loop BE-KPFM, which relies on capacitive actuation of the cantilever, photothermal actuation is shown to be highly sensitive to the electrostatic force gradient even at biases close to the contact potential difference (CPD). PthBE-KPFM is further shown to provide a more localized measurement of true CPD in comparison to the gold standard ambient KPFM approach, amplitude modulated KPFM. Finally, PthBE-KPFM data contain information relating to local dielectric properties and electronic dissipation between tip and sample unattainable using conventional single frequency KPFM approaches.

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“…For comparison with these modes, we also discuss a simple tip-bias experiment where a DC voltage is applied to a cantilever without an actuation electrode, as might be typical in piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM), 18 electrostatic force microscopy (EFM), 19 or kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM). 20 In this case, it is well known that the force on the tip (F t s ) depends on the tip-sample capacitance (C t s ) gradient and may be modeled as F t s = 1 2 ∂C t s ∂z V t s 2 ; 21 here, z is the tip displacement (with the z-axis directed along the normal to the back of the cantilever), V t s is the potential difference between the tip and the sample, and we have taken V t s to include any applied tip bias and the contact potential difference between the tip and sample.…”

Section: Displacement Control In Common and Differential Modesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modular apparatus for electrostatic actuation of common atomic force microscope cantilevers

Long

Cannara

2015

Review of Scientific Instruments

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Piezoelectric actuation of atomic force microscope (AFM) cantilevers often suffers from spurious mechanical resonances in the loop between the signal driving the cantilever and the actual tip motion. These spurious resonances can reduce the accuracy of AFM measurements and in some cases completely obscure the cantilever response. To address these limitations, we developed a specialized AFM cantilever holder for electrostatic actuation of AFM cantilevers. The holder contains electrical contacts for the AFM cantilever chip, as well as an electrode (or electrodes) that may be precisely positioned with respect to the back of the cantilever. By controlling the voltages on the AFM cantilever and the actuation electrode(s), an electrostatic force is applied directly to the cantilever, providing a near-ideal transfer function from drive signal to tip motion. We demonstrate both static and dynamic actuations, achieved through the application of direct current and alternating current voltage schemes, respectively. As an example application, we explore contact resonance atomic force microscopy, which is a technique for measuring the mechanical properties of surfaces on the sub-micron length scale. Using multiple electrodes, we also show that the torsional resonances of the AFM cantilever may be excited electrostatically, opening the door for advanced dynamic lateral force measurements with improved accuracy and precision.

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Electrostatic force microscopy: principles and some applications to semiconductors

Cited by 268 publications

References 45 publications

Direct probing of electron and hole trapping into nano-floating-gate in organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories

Direct probing of electron and hole trapping into nano-floating-gate in organic field-effect transistor nonvolatile memories

Band excitation Kelvin probe force microscopy utilizing photothermal excitation

Modular apparatus for electrostatic actuation of common atomic force microscope cantilevers

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