Magnetic force microscopy (MFM) is an atomic force microscopy (AFM) application that is widely used to characterize magnetic properties of various materials at the nanoscale. In this technique, a sharp tip coated with ferromagnetic material scans the surface and maps the distribution and strength of magnetic domains on the sample. MFM mode can be applied to probe the properties of magnetic materials for academic and applied research, e.g. to characterize, evaluate, and develop magnetic storage devices and magnetic recording components such as hard disk media, and magneto-resistive heads as well as to image naturally occurring or deliberately written domain structures in magnetic materials.
MFM mode uses Non-contact mode to detect the surface topography of the sample. At the same time, the MFM image is generated by measuring the amplitude and phase of cantilever oscillation. These signals contain information about magnetic domain distributions of the sample surface. MFM can be used to image naturally occurring or deliberately written domain structures in magnetic materials.
In this webinar, we will present an introduction on MFM principle and applications followed by live demo by our AFM expert.
Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is a technique that measures forces between a probe and sample, which can be used not only to measure the topography of surfaces with nanometre scale resolution but to map and manipulate a range of properties which can be addressed via the tip. Here, we touch on but a few of the capabilities of state-of-the-art atomic force microscopy for layered materials research and explore the possibilities to correlate a host of functional properties in one mouse click using our new FX40 automatic AFM. After introducing the working principles of the measurement of topography, electrostatics and mechanical properties using atomic force microscopy, we will then proceed to perform live nanomechanical [1] and Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) [2,3] measurements on transition metal dichalcogenides which have regions of strain due to trapped interfacial contamination. In addition to studying the interplay of strain and work function in these materials, we will highlight how automated tip exchange enables such measurements to be performed in a less laborious and more reproducible manner.
Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is an extremely versatile technique enabling the study of different aspects of biological systems with ultra-high resolution. Conventionally, AFM has been used to assess the morphology of living biological systems and to monitor the evolution of their mechanical properties at the nanoscale, which provides information on the cellular structure and stiffness even in living systems. Further applications of AFM for biological matter involve the combination of ultrastructural information with conventional or fluorescence optical microscopy. Correlative analyses via combining advanced AFM with high-magnification optical and fluorescence microscopes allow for a more comprehensive understanding of the cellular status. In this webinar, we will use the Park Systems NX12 AFM coupled with a Nikon fluorescence microscope to perform studies on living biological systems such as erythrocytes and neuroblastomas. By using conventional optical and fluorescence images, we identify cells that are most interesting for our studies. We use the AFM to determine their morphology and mechanical properties at ultra-resolution level, monitoring the response of the cells to environmental conditions such as pharmacological stimuli or starvation. Also, we prove how AFM cantilevers can be used as nanomechanical sensors to provide complementary information on the cellular behavior in different environments. The combined results on neuroblastomas represent the first steps of the COMA-SAN project (COMplexity Analysis in the Simplest Alive Neuronal network), in which we investigate the communication-mediated group behavior of these cells. Overall, our study opens a path to better understand the interactions between cells and to evidence the complexity of group dynamics in cells.
Imaging under liquid conditions is an important aspect of an atomic force microscope (AFM) to map the topography as well as mechanical properties of sample surface. Generally, the setup of AFM imaging under liquid conditions seem to be tricky due realigning the laser on the cantilever in liquid environment due to the refractive index change. However, Park Systems setup eases this process. Using liquid imaging one can easily map various samples including organic and biological cells as well. This webinar will focus on the basic principle and setup to map samples under liquid conditions.
