Atomic Force Microscopy in Hydrogen Storage Materials Research

Abstract

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is a powerful technique that was developed about several years ago. The AFM is a part of the microscopy technique family, called scanning probe microscopy (SPM). Hydrogen storage nanomaterials have been extensively investigated. Among different microscopic techniques, the AFM has a great potential for nanomaterial imaging. Mechanical alloying is a common way of producing new hydrogen storage nanomaterials, used by the M. Jurczyk group. The AFM has many advantages over the other SPM techniques, including research of the all materials type, such as conducting, nonconducting, hard and soft, as well as simplicity of operation, operating in different environments, including ambient, vacuum, liquid, or any gaseous atmosphere. The AFM is a useful tool for the investigation of hydrogen storage nanomaterials in the form of nanopowders, providing slightly less data than high-resolution transmission microscope. Usually the powder size, morphology, phases, and grain size are revealed in standard procedure investigations.