Abstract
In order to observe the morphology of nanostructures at the submicroscale, we use a confocal laser scanning (CLS) microscope built in our laboratory. The theoretical resolution of the hand-made CLS microscope is 150 nm and the performance of the microscope is evaluated by observing a USAF target. Vanadium pentoxide nanorods grown by electron beam irradiation and thermal oxidation methods are used as nanostructures and the morphologies of the nanorods observed by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) are compared with those obtained by scanning electron microscopy. The magnification and resolution of the CLSM were estimated to be approximately 1500 and 800 nm, respectively. From the results, we confirm that the CLSM can be used to measure nanostructures at the sub-micro-scale without a preconditioning process.
Highlights
Vanadium pentoxide (V2O5) is the most stable compound in the V–O system and exhibits highly anisotropic electrical and optical properties due to its orthorhombic structure.[1]
The resolution of the confocal laser scanning (CLS) microscope was evaluated by observing a USAF target, and the measurements obtained by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) were compared with those obtained by scanning electron microscopy (SEM)
We proposed using CLSM to observe the morphology of nanostructures at the sub-micro-scale
Summary
Vanadium pentoxide (V2O5) is the most stable compound in the V–O system and exhibits highly anisotropic electrical and optical properties due to its orthorhombic structure.[1] Because of its outstanding chemical, electronic, and thermal properties,[2,3,4,5] nanostructured-V2O5 materials such as nanowires, nanorods, and nanocrystals are promising materials for application in electronic and optical devices.[6,7] Several methods, including scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM), have been used to determine the surface morphologies of nanostructures grown by various methods. SEM is the most common method used to observe nanoscale structures with high resolution, but this method has some disadvantages. SEM requires a preconditioning process to enhance the electrical conductivity of the sample. A nondestructive, simple method for observing the surface morphologies of nanostructures is required
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