Design and application of a scanning tunneling microscope for the observation of large machined surfaces

Abstract

The scanning tunneling microscope is an instrument which can be used to image conductive surfaces with angstrom resolution. This makes the STM an ideal instrument for microscopic studies on machined metals and semiconductors. Several papers have been published showing the effectiveness of the scanning tunneling microscope (STM) to image single point diamond turned metal surfaces such as gold and aluminum.A large sample STM has been constructed specifically to handle machined samples as large as 76 mm in diameter (Fig. 1). A tube scanner has been implimented which allows scan lengths of up to 10 μm. The STM has been designed for quick and easy sample/tip exchange.STM studies have been made on single point diamond turned metals and semiconductor materials. Two forms of copper were diamond turned and studied using the large sample STM;