Theories of the feedback and vibration isolation systems for the scanning tunneling microscope

Abstract

The theories of the feedback and vibration isolation systems have been developed to illuminate the essential points in the design and operation of the scanning tunneling microscope (STM). By analyzing a delay differential equation, we can understand the behavior of feedback and estimate the necessary gain and time constant for the best performance of the STM. Design considerations for a vibration isolation system consisting of spring suspension and magnetic damping are discussed with theoretical optimization.