Tip artifacts in atomic force microscope imaging of thin film surfaces
- 1 September 1993
- journal article
- research article
- Published by AIP Publishing in Journal of Applied Physics
- Vol. 74 (5), 3608-3610
- https://doi.org/10.1063/1.354498
Abstract
We report a study of tip artifacts in atomic force microscope (AFM) images of thin film surfaces. Specifically, a troublesome artifact that occurs when an AFM tip images surface features with a radius of curvature less than the apex of the tip. These artifacts are not easily detected, since the affected AFM images are similar to those expected for a thin film with a columnar microstructure. In a study of 23 thin films, we found that for a significant fraction, the AFM image was affected by this type of tip artifact. In the worst cases, the AFM images consisted almost entirely of images of the AFM tip. We discuss a simple technique to determine the extent of these tip artifacts.Keywords
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