Scanning Tunneling Microscope - How Nanoscientists see Atoms

Scanning Tunneling Microscope - How Nanoscientists see Atoms episodes:

• July 24, 2017Scanning tunneling microscopes (STMs) allow nanoscientists to see individual atoms.

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• July 24, 2017To see how a Nanosurf easyScan STM works, let's take it apart in virtual reality.

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• July 24, 2017The heart of the STM is an atomically sharp probe.

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• July 24, 2017A voltage induces electrons to jump from the probe's tip to the sample atoms.

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• July 24, 2017A feedback loop holds the electron current constant by keeping the distance from probe to sample constant.

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• July 24, 2017But how can it move the probe over these tiny nanometer distances?

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• July 24, 2017Voltages to a piezoelectric crystal move the probe in and out.

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• July 24, 2017Another crystal moves it side to side.

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• July 24, 2017A third crystal moves it up and down.

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• July 24, 2017Let's see how these work together to create an atomic scale map of the sample surface.

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