Two-axis probing system for atomic force microscopy

A novel two-axis probing system is proposed for multiaxis atomic force microscopy (AFM). It employs a compliant manipulator that is optimally designed in terms of geometries and kinematics, and is actuated by multiple magnetic actuators to simultaneously control tip position and change tip orientation to achieve greater accessibility of the sample surface when imaging surfaces having large geometric variations. It leads to the creation of a multiaxis AFM system, which is a three-dimensional surface tool rather than a two-dimensional planar surface tool. The use of the system to scan the bottom corner of a grating step is reported. (C) 2008 American Institute Of Physics.