scanning tunneling microscope

E541363

A scanning tunneling microscope is a powerful instrument that images surfaces at the atomic scale by measuring quantum tunneling currents between a sharp conductive tip and a sample.

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Statements (47)

Predicate Object
instanceOf microscope
scientific instrument
surface analysis technique
achievesResolution atomic resolution
associatedWith IBM Zürich Research Laboratory NERFINISHED
basedOn quantum tunneling
canImage adsorbed molecules
atomic-scale defects
individual atoms
canMeasure local density of electronic states
surface electronic structure
work function variations
enables construction of atomic-scale structures
manipulation of individual atoms
real-space imaging of surfaces
hasAbbreviation STM
hasComponent current amplifier
feedback control system
piezoelectric scanner
sharp metallic tip
vibration isolation system
hasMode constant-current mode
constant-height mode
spectroscopic mode
inventedBy Gerd Binnig NERFINISHED
Heinrich Rohrer NERFINISHED
inventedInYear 1981
measures tunneling current
oftenOperatedIn ambient conditions
cryogenic temperatures
ultra-high vacuum
operatesBy maintaining constant tunneling current or constant height
scanning a tip over a surface
recognizedBy Nobel Prize in Physics 1986 NERFINISHED
relatedTo atomic force microscope
requires conductive or semiconductive sample
conductive tip
electrical noise reduction
high mechanical stability
sub-nanometer tip–sample separation
usedFor imaging surfaces at atomic scale
probing electronic properties of surfaces
studying surface structure of materials
usedInField condensed matter physics
materials science
nanotechnology
surface science

Referenced by (2)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Gerd Binnig coInvented scanning tunneling microscope
Heinrich Rohrer coInvented scanning tunneling microscope