Techniques

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Techniques

AFM/SPM - AFM Noise

Scanning probe microscopes (SPM) operate by rastering a probe across the surface of a sample to obtain information. There are a wide range of probes used in SPM and the information gathered can take many forms – topography, elemental composition, conductivity, etc. – depending on the type of probe used.

Interferometry

The basic principles of interferometry date back to the seventeenth century. Interferometry uses the characteristics of electromagnetic waves to gather information about a sample. Interferometers have been employed to measure radiation from bodies in outer space as part of astronomical research. In the context of nanotechnology research...

Microscopy

Optical microscopy utilizes a lens – or lenses - to image objects at greater magnification than the human eye can perceive. The most rudimentary microscopes consisting of just one lens – essentially a magnifying glass – appeared over five hundred years ago.

Microbalance

Balances and scales have been in use for over four thousand years. These instruments have proven invaluable for commercial transactions to determine the weight of a material for sale. Microbalances are notable for the very high level of precision at which they operate.

Nanoindentation

One of the primary instruments in the material scientist’s toolkit is the nanoindenter. Nanoindenters operate by pressing a tip into a material with a calibrated load and then measuring the material’s response to this stimulus.

Profilometry

As the name suggests, profilers are used to provide highly accurate representations of a sample’s profile. More specifically, they provide quantitative data and qualitative images on the surface topography of materials. There are two main types of profiler: optical (non-contact) profilers and stylus profilers.

SEM

The SEM incorporates an electron gun at the top of the column which thermionically generates a beam of electrons. As this beam travels down the column it is conditioned by coils which act as lenses that focus the beam and cause it to raster across a sample in the vacuum chamber.

Unique Instruments - Vibration Measurement Equipment

The field of precision research has expanded exponentially over the past century. With that expansion has come a high degree of specialization among researchers. Scientists now can spend years probing one very specific question within a particular niche of their field.