Scanning probe microscopy and related methods

• Ernst Meyer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2010, 1, 155–157, doi:10.3762/bjnano.1.18

• . Scanning probe microscopy (SPM) uses probing tips to map properties, such as topography, local adhesive forces, elasticity, friction or magnetic properties. In the emerging fields of nanoscience and nanotechnology these types of microscopes help to characterize the nanoworld. In addition, local probes can

• -scale to the micron scale of micromachinery. Mechanical actuation is used to reduce friction of these micro contacts. An important aspect of SPM is the possibility to modify surfaces. The probing tip can be either used to push or pull atoms, molecules or particles across surfaces. These experiments give

Magnetic coupling mechanisms in particle/thin film composite systems

• Giovanni A. Badini Confalonieri,
• Philipp Szary,
• Durgamadhab Mishra,
• Maria J. Benitez,
• Mathias Feyen,
• An Hui Lu,
• Leonardo Agudo,
• Gunther Eggeler,
• Oleg Petracic and
• Hartmut Zabel

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2010, 1, 101–107, doi:10.3762/bjnano.1.12

• coercivity of Hc = 280 Oe at 15 K and Hc= 40 Oe at 330 K. The large increase in coercivity at low temperature is in agreement with previous reports and with the model of superparamagnetic (SPM) particles [29][30]. After the deposition of Co on top of the NP arrays, the Hc at 15 K increases to 408 Oe and 455

• composite (red triangles), respectively. The ZFC/FC curves for the NP monolayer show the regular behavior as expected from a SPM system, i.e., a peak in the ZFC curve marking the blocking temperature, Tb ≈ 250 K, of the system and the splitting of the ZFC and FC curves near Tb. However, an important feature