Scanning Tunneling Microscope - How Nanoscientists see Atoms
John C. Bean - WeCanFigureThisOut.org
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Take apart a Scanning Tunneling Microscope (STM) in virtual reality to see how it works
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Scanning tunneling microscopes (STMs) allow nanoscientists to see individual atoms.
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Jul 24, 2017
9 sec
To see how a Nanosurf easyScan STM works, let's take it apart in virtual reality.
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Jul 24, 2017
6 sec
The heart of the STM is an atomically sharp probe.
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Jul 24, 2017
15 sec
A voltage induces electrons to jump from the probe's tip to the sample atoms.
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Jul 24, 2017
16 sec
A feedback loop holds the electron current constant by keeping the distance from probe to sample constant.
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Jul 24, 2017
10 sec
But how can it move the probe over these tiny nanometer distances?
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Jul 24, 2017
12 sec
Voltages to a piezoelectric crystal move the probe in and out.
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Jul 24, 2017
23 sec
Another crystal moves it side to side.
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Jul 24, 2017
15 sec
A third crystal moves it up and down.
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Jul 24, 2017
15 sec
Let's see how these work together to create an atomic scale map of the sample surface.
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Jul 24, 2017
11 sec
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