Scanning probe microscope and its sample holder

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10073116-B2
Application number	US-201415533535-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 24, 2014
Priority date	Dec 24, 2014
Publication date	Sep 11, 2018
Grant date	Sep 11, 2018

Abstract

This sample holder for a scanning probe microscope is constituted of (1) a container that retains a liquid and (2) a flat-plate-shaped upper cover that covers an upper opening of the container and that has a narrow slit above the position where a sample is placed. In the upper cover, the slit has a slit width with which a thin film of the liquid is formed over the upper surface of the sample when the liquid fills the space between the container and the upper cover. The thin film of the liquid has a film thickness smaller than the distance between the upper surface of the sample and the upper cover.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A sample holder for scanning probe microscope, comprising:
a container that holds liquid; and
a tabular-shaped upper lid that covers an upper opening of the container, and that has a slit above a placement position of the sample, wherein the slit having a slit width to form a thin film of the liquid, having a film thickness smaller than a distance between an upper surface of the sample and the upper lid, on the upper surface of the sample, when the liquid is filled between the container and the upper lid.

2. The sample holder for scanning probe microscope according to claim 1 ,
wherein the film thickness is a film thickness configured to generate a nonlinear optical signal in the sample when the sample in the liquid is irradiated with a pulsed laser beam.

3. The sample holder for scanning probe microscope according to claim 1 ,
wherein the container has an inlet and a recovery port for the liquid, and
wherein the slit is formed in the upper lid in parallel to a circulation direction of the liquid.

4. The sample holder for scanning probe microscope according to claim 1 ,
wherein the container has an inlet and a recovery port for the liquid, and
wherein the slit is formed in the upper lid in a direction orthogonal to a circulation direction of the liquid.

5. The sample holder for scanning probe microscope according to claim 4 , further comprising a partition that limits the flow of the liquid to induce the liquid to the upper surface of the sample.

6. A scanning probe microscope comprising:
a sample holder having: a container that holds liquid; a tabular-shaped upper lid that covers an upper opening of the container, and that has a slit above a placement position of a sample, wherein the slit forms a thin film of the liquid having a film thickness smaller than a distance between an upper surface of the sample and the upper lid on the upper surface of the sample when the liquid is filled between the container and the upper lid;
a probe;
an oscillator that displaces the probe in upward and downward directions;
a pulsed laser light source that irradiates a pulsed laser beam to a region of the sample measured with the probe;
a filter integrated detector that measures an intensity of an output light caused in the sample by irradiation of the pulsed laser beam by energy spectroscopy;
a scanning mechanism that moves the sample holder in a horizontal direction; and
a control device that controls the oscillator, the pulsed laser beam source, and the scanning mechanism.

7. The scanning probe microscope according to claim 6 ,
wherein, for a film thickness of the thin film being r×100 μm, the pulsed laser light source is configured to apply an energy density per unit area and per unit time of 60 to 480×3 r−1 μJ/mm 2 /ps.

8. The scanning probe microscope according to claim 6 ,
further comprising a sample position control mechanism that adjusts a height position of the sample under the sample holder,
wherein the control device controls the sample position control mechanism based on the result of measurement with the filter integrated detector to adjust the height position of the sample and adjust the film thickness of the thin film.

9. The scanning probe microscope according to claim 6 ,
wherein the pulsed laser beam source has a first light source that irradiates a pulsed laser beam with a fixed wavelength and a second light source that irradiates a pulsed laser beam with a variable wavelength, and
wherein the filter integrated detector detects the sum frequency light as the output light.

10. The scanning probe microscope according to claim 6 ,
wherein the output light is a second harmonic wave of the pulsed laser beam.

11. The scanning probe microscope according to claim 6 ,
wherein the output light is Raman scattering light of the pulsed laser beam.

12. The scanning probe microscope according to claim 6 ,
wherein the oscillator is formed with a cantilever with a probe attached to its end, and an exciter that displaces the cantilever in upward and downward directions.

13. A scanning probe microscope comprising:
a sample holder having: a container that holds liquid; a tabular-shaped upper lid that covers an upper opening of the container and that has a slit above a placement position of a sample, the slit having a slit width to form a thin film of the liquid having a film thickness smaller than a distance between an upper surface of the sample and the upper lid on the upper surface of the sample when the liquid is filled between the container and the upper lid;
a probe;
an oscillator that displaces the probe in upward and downward directions;
a probe power source that applies an alternating current voltage and a direct current voltage to the probe;
a detector that detects a force applied to the probe;
a scanning mechanism that moves the sample holder in a horizontal direction; and
a control device that controls the oscillator, the probe power source, and the scanning mechanism.

Assignees

• Hitachi Ltd

Inventors

• NAGATA Sanato
• Hashizume Tomihiro
• Nambu Akira
• Koizumi Hideaki

Classifications

• G01Q30/14 Primary

  Liquid environment · CPC title

• G01Q60/18

  SNOM [Scanning Near-Field Optical Microscopy] or apparatus therefor, e.g. SNOM probes · CPC title

• G01Q60/24

  AFM [Atomic Force Microscopy] or apparatus therefor, e.g. AFM probes · CPC title

• G01Q30/20 Primary

  Sample handling devices or methods · CPC title