Methods and devices for extending a time period until changing a measuring tip of a scanning probe microscope

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11977097-B2
Application number	US-202217829922-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 1, 2022
Priority date	Nov 29, 2016
Publication date	May 7, 2024
Grant date	May 7, 2024

Abstract

The present invention relates to methods and devices for extending a time period until changing a measuring tip of a scanning probe microscope. In particular, the invention relates to a method for hardening a measuring tip for a scanning probe microscope, comprising the step of: Processing the measuring tip with a beam of an energy beam source, the energy beam source being part of a scanning electron microscope.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for sharpening, and/or thinning a measuring tip within a scanning probe microscope, including the following steps:
a. producing a plasma outside of the scanning probe microscope;
b. providing the externally produced plasma at the location of the measuring tip within the scanning probe microscope, including guiding the externally produced plasma to the location of the measuring tip of the scanning probe microscope; and
c. sharpening and/or thinning the measuring tip within the scanning probe microscope by interacting the externally produced plasma with the measuring tip.

2. The method of claim 1 , furthermore including the step of: setting a composition of the externally produced plasma at the location of the measuring tip by way of a difference between a pressure at the location of the measuring tip and a source pressure of a plasma source, a distance between the measuring tip and the plasma source, and/or a cross section of a pipe system between the plasma source and the scanning probe microscope.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the source pressure of the plasma source comprises a range from 0.05 Pa to 250 Pa.

4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the pressure at the location of the measuring tip prior to an activation of the plasma source comprises a range of 1 Pa to 10 −7 Pa.

5. The method of claim 2 , wherein the distance between the measuring tip and an output of the plasma source can be 1 cm to 10 m.

6. The method of claim 2 , wherein the cross section of the pipe system comprises an area of 1 mm 2 to 100 cm 2 .

7. The method of claim 2 , wherein the difference between the pressure at the location of the measuring tip and the source pressure of the plasma source, the distance between the measuring tip and the plasma source, and/or the cross section of the pipe system between the plasma source and the scanning probe microscope is/are configured to cause ions and electrons in the plasma to substantially recombine within the plasma or at the walls of a plasma chamber of the plasma source.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein a percentage of particles of the externally produced plasma that are charged is substantially zero at the location of the measuring tip.

9. The method of claim 8 , comprising using radicals in the plasma to etch the measuring tip to sharpen and/or thin the measuring tip.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the externally produced plasma comprises at least one of oxygen radicals, hydroxyl radicals, nitrogen monoxide radicals, or nitrous oxide radicals at the location of the measuring tip.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the externally produced plasma acts on the measuring tip at the location for a time duration of 1 second to 100 minutes.

12. The method of claim 1 , further comprising: repeating sharpening and/or thinning of the measuring tip once to ten times.

13. A scanning probe microscope, having:
a. a measuring probe, a measuring tip and/or a measuring tip carrier with at least two measuring tips;
b. a plasma source, which is embodied to produce a plasma comprising charged particles and radicals and which is arranged outside of the scanning probe microscope; and
c. a pipe system, which is embodied to guide the plasma produced by the plasma source into the scanning probe microscope to the location of the measuring tip;
wherein the scanning probe microscope is configured such that at least one of (i) a difference between a pressure at the location of the measuring probe and a source pressure of the plasma source, (ii) a difference between a pressure at the location of the measuring tip and a source pressure of the plasma source, (iii) a distance between the measuring probe and the plasma source, (iv) a distance between the measuring tip and the plasma source, or (v) a cross section of the pipe system is configured such that the percentage of particles of the externally produced plasma that are charged is substantially zero at at least one of the location of the measuring probe or the location of the measuring tip.

14. The scanning probe microscope of claim 13 , further having a pump system, which is embodied to produce a predetermined negative pressure at the location of the measuring probe, of the measuring tip or of the measuring tip carrier.

15. The scanning probe microscope of claim 13 , further having a control device, which is embodied to control the plasma source.

16. The scanning probe microscope of claim 13 , wherein the measuring tip is carbon based.

17. The scanning probe microscope of claim 13 , further comprising an energy beam source and an imaging apparatus for an energy beam of the energy beam source.

18. The scanning probe microscope of claim 17 , wherein a measuring head is embodied to align to the measuring probe, the measuring tip and/or the measuring tip carrier with at least two measuring tips in antiparallel fashion in relation to a direction of the energy beam of the energy beam source.

19. The scanning probe microscope of claim 13 , further comprising at least one storage container for an etching gas, a gas supply system and a gas flow rate control system.

20. The scanning probe microscope of claim 13 , wherein the scanning probe microscope is embodied to carry out a method for cleaning a measuring probe and/or for sharpening, thinning and/or cleaning a measuring tip within the scanning probe microscope, including:
producing a plasma outside of the scanning probe microscope; and
providing the externally produced plasma at the location of the measuring probe within the scanning probe microscope for the purposes of cleaning the measuring probe and/or at the location of the measuring tip within the scanning probe microscope for the purposes of sharpening, thinning and/or cleaning the measuring tip.

21. A computer program comprising instructions which, if they are executed by a computer system of the scanning probe microscope of claim 13 , cause the scanning probe microscope to carry out a method for sharpening and/or thinning a measuring tip within the scanning probe microscope, including:
producing a plasma outside of the scanning probe microscope;
providing the externally produced plasma at the location of the measuring probe within the scanning probe microscope; and
sharpening and/or thinning the measuring tip within the scanning probe microscope using the externally produced plasma provided at the location of the measuring probe.

22. The scanning probe microscope of claim 13 , wherein the plasma at the first location comprises at least one of oxygen radicals, hydroxyl radicals, nitrogen monoxide radicals, or nitrous oxide radicals.

23. The scanning probe microscope of claim 13 , wherein at least one of (i) the difference between the pressure at the location of the measuring probe and the source pressure of the plasma source, (ii) the difference between the pressure at the location of the measuring tip and the source pressure of the plasma source, (iii) the distance between the measuring probe and the plasma source, (iv) the distance between the measuring tip and the plasma source, or (v) the cross section of the pipe system is configured such that at least a portion of the radicals of the plasma are available to interact with at least one of the measuring probe or the measuring tip before the radicals return to their ground state.

24. The scanning probe microscope of claim 13 , wherein at least one of (i) the difference between the pressure at the

Assignees

• Zeiss Carl Smt Gmbh

Inventors

• Baralia Gabriel
• Becker Rainer
• Kornilov Kinga
• Baur Christof
• Pieper Hans Hermann

Classifications

• G01Q60/38 Primary

  Probes, their manufacture, or their related instrumentation, e.g. holders · CPC title

• G01Q70/06 Primary

  Probe tip arrays · CPC title

• G01Q70/08

  Probe characteristics · CPC title

• G01Q70/16

  Probe manufacture · CPC title

• H01J37/3053

  for evaporating or etching · CPC title