Optimization of solution-processed oligothiophene:fullerene based organic solar cells by using solvent additives

• Gisela L. Schulz,
• Marta Urdanpilleta,
• Roland Fitzner,
• Eduard Brier,
• Elena Mena-Osteritz,
• Egon Reinold and
• Peter Bäuerle

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 680–689, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.77

• ) as eluent. Surface images were recorded with the help of a Bruker Nanoscope V AFM at ambient temperature in tapping mode. Synthesis: 3',3''',4',4'''-Tetrabutyl-2,2':5',2'':5'',2''':5''',2''''-quinquethiophene (3): Diiodoterthiophene 1 (2.77 g, 3.80 mmol) and 2-(thien-2-yl)-4,4,5,5-tetramethyl-[1,3,2

Routes to rupture and folding of graphene on rough 6H-SiC(0001) and their identification

• M. Temmen,
• O. Ochedowski,
• B. Kleine Bussmann,
• M. Schleberger,
• M. Reichling and
• T. R. J. Bollmann

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 625–631, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.69

• , France) for SHI irradiation with 81 MeV Ta24+ ions under 1.5° grazing incidence. The ion fluence is adjusted to 5–10 ions/μm2. Irradiated samples are initially inspected by tapping mode atomic force microscopy performed under ambient conditions using a Dimension 3100 AFM (Veeco Metrology, Santa Barbara

• exposed to SHI irradiation (i) followed by a combination of line scanning the sample with an AFM tip (ii) and severe heating (iii). The tapping mode AFM survey image shown in Figure 3a exhibits a representative part of the flake comprising all phenomena discussed in this paper, rupture and folding of

• various origin, labeled by (i), (ii) and (iii), respectively. The tapping mode AFM survey image shown in Figure 3b, has been taken right after SHI irradiation where the SLG shows foldings at an angle of 58.0 ± 1.2° with respect to the flakes edge. The properties of such foldings related to the ion track

AFM as an analysis tool for high-capacity sulfur cathodes for Li–S batteries

• Renate Hiesgen,
• Seniz Sörgel,
• Rémi Costa,
• Linus Carlé,
• Ines Galm,
• Natalia Cañas,
• Brigitta Pascucci and
• K. Andreas Friedrich

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 611–624, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.68

• cathodes. X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements of Li2S exposed to ambient air showed that insulating Li2S hydrolyses to insulating LiOH. This validates the significance of electrical ex-situ AFM analysis after cycling. Conductive tapping mode AFM indicated the existence of large carbon-coated sulfur

• tapping mode AFM. We aim to demonstrate that a direct correlation exists between the cycling stability and the properties on the nanometre scale, and that AFM analysis can disclose the morphology of the carbon–sulfur interface. Based on the analytical results of the nanoscale analysis an optimized

• tapping mode, the “Quantitative Nanomechanical Peak Force” (QNM™) mode, where the force–separation curve is recorded at every image point and the topography mechanical properties (e.g., adhesion force, energy dissipation, deformation, DMT modulus or stiffness, peak force, phase shift) are simultaneously

Kelvin probe force microscopy of nanocrystalline TiO₂ photoelectrodes

• Alex Henning,
• Gino Günzburger,
• Res Jöhr,
• Yossi Rosenwaks,
• Biljana Bozic-Weber,
• Catherine E. Housecroft,
• Edwin C. Constable,
• Ernst Meyer and
• Thilo Glatzel

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 418–428, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.49

• H2O and <10 ppm O2) on a commercial microscope (Solver PH-47, NT-MDT). Amplitude modulation (AM) KPFM was conducted with a two-scan method (lift mode) meaning that the topography and CPD were measured separately (Figure 10). During the first line scan the topography was determined in tapping mode AFM

Multiple regimes of operation in bimodal AFM: understanding the energy of cantilever eigenmodes

• Daniel Kiracofe,
• Arvind Raman and
• Dalia Yablon

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 385–393, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.45

• property contrast with high resolution. Bimodal AFM, where two eigenmodes are simultaneously excited, confers significant advantages over conventional single-frequency tapping mode AFM due to its ability to provide contrast between regions with different material properties under gentle imaging conditions

• -/nanoscale [1]. Although there are many different operating modes in AFM, one of the most popular is amplitude modulation (AM-AFM), commonly known as tapping mode, in which the cantilever is oscillated at its first natural frequency. AM-AFM provides two basic images of the surface, a height (topography

High-resolution nanomechanical analysis of suspended electrospun silk fibers with the torsional harmonic atomic force microscope

• Mark Cronin-Golomb and
• Ozgur Sahin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 243–248, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.25

• -average detector signals in vertical and horizontal channels during a tapping-mode AFM experiment. To minimize contributions of drift in quasi-static deflection signals, we previously developed a procedure that takes advantage of the transitions between attractive and repulsive modes [36]. The calibrated

• frequency response and gain of the torsional mode allows the reconstruction of the tip–sample-force waveforms. A computer program carries out these calculations in real time during the tapping-mode imaging process. The program also corrects for nonlinearities of the position-sensitive diode and for

Micro- and nanoscale electrical characterization of large-area graphene transferred to functional substrates

• Gabriele Fisichella,
• Salvatore Di Franco,
• Patrick Fiorenza,
• Raffaella Lo Nigro,
• Fabrizio Roccaforte,
• Cristina Tudisco,
• Guido G. Condorelli,
• Nicolò Piluso,
• Noemi Spartà,
• Stella Lo Verso,
• Corrado Accardi,
• Cristina Tringali,
• Sebastiano Ravesi and
• Filippo Giannazzo

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 234–242, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.24

• tapping mode atomic force microscopy (AFM), are also reported in Figure 1c and Figure 1d. In particular, from the phase image it is possible to see the presence of peculiar corrugations (wrinkles) in the graphene membrane over the copper foil. The origin of these corrugations will be discussed in the

• . Due to the good optical contrast between the graphene-coated and bare SiO2 areas, a homogenous graphene membrane, free from macroscopic cracks, can be observed. Higher resolution morphological analyses of the graphene layer onto SiO2 were carried out by tapping mode AFM. Two representative AFM images

• electronic properties. Experimental Tapping mode AFM and TRCAFM: Both tapping-mode AFM and torsion resonant conductive atomic force microscopy (TRCAFM) measurements were performed by using a DI3100 microscope with Nanoscope V electronics. For TRCAFM, we used Pt/Ir-coated Si tips with an apex radius of

Bimodal atomic force microscopy driving the higher eigenmode in frequency-modulation mode: Implementation, advantages, disadvantages and comparison to the open-loop case

• Daniel Ebeling and
• Santiago D. Solares

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 198–207, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.20

• amplitudes and phase shifts at each eigenmode of the cantilever. In contrast, the CE version of AM-FM requires either a phase-locked-loop (PLL) or a self-excitation (phase-shift-based) loop to keep the phase locked at 90 degrees (so far we have observed that self-excitation loops are less stable in tapping

• -mode experiments using the same setup as in Figure 1, as it is very easy for the system to lose resonance during the tip–sample impact, where the instantaneous resonance frequency, and thus the length and required phase shift of each successive oscillation, changes rapidly). The CA version of AM-FM

Towards 4-dimensional atomic force spectroscopy using the spectral inversion method

• Jeffrey C. Williams and
• Santiago D. Solares

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 87–93, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.10

• implementation of this procedure. Despite the unsolved challenges, the proposed approach could, in combination with future instrumentation and cantilever upgrades, enable studies in which rate-dependent phenomena, such as viscoelasticity and plasticity, are characterized in real time by using tapping-mode atomic

Controlled deposition and combing of DNA across lithographically defined patterns on silicon

• Zeinab Esmail Nazari and
• Leonid Gurevich

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 72–76, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.8

• used without sonication. The same procedure was carried out in order to deposit and comb DNA and DNA–peptide conjugates on platinum nanoelectrodes. Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) was carried out on a Nanoscope IIIa (Bruker, USA), operating in tapping mode. OMCL-AC200TS, OMCL-AC240TS (Olympus), and HR

Sub-10 nm colloidal lithography for circuit-integrated spin-photo-electronic devices

• Adrian Iovan,
• Marco Fischer,
• Roberto Lo Conte and
• Vladislav Korenivski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 884–892, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.98

• . Figure 1a and b show the tapping-mode atomic force microscopy (AFM) images of a typical monolayer, with the particle diameter (and the interparticle distance) of 200 nm. The monolayer film is of good quality, with only minor defects on the large scale (Figure 1a). On the small scale (Figure 1b) the

• of the integrated devices were measured by the conventional four-point technique, with the device resistance defined as R(I) = V(I)/I. For more details on the spin-transfer-torque measurements see [29][30]. For more details on stimulated spin-photo-emission (spin lasing) see [15][24][25][26]. Tapping

• -mode atomic force microscopy images of a typical monolayer, with the particle diameter (and the inter-particle distance) of 200 nm on (a) a large scale and (b) a small scale. Scanning electron microscopy image of the sample (c) shows that the nanoparticle array has a nearly perfect close-packed

Large-scale analysis of high-speed atomic force microscopy data sets using adaptive image processing

• Blake W. Erickson,
• Séverine Coquoz,
• Jonathan D. Adams,
• Daniel J. Burns and
• Georg E. Fantner

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 747–758, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.84

• demonstrated its applicability to data acquired in tapping mode in air, tapping mode in fluid, and quantitative nanomechanical mapping (QNM) in fluid. Finally, this algorithm can also be applied to strongly stepped samples, such as atomic layers. Figure S1 in Supporting Information File 1 shows the correction

• and H both show improvements in the representation of the surface in comparison to the other results. These improvements are shown clearly in the histograms. The grid was imaged under tapping mode in air. The lipid sample is the height data from QNM mode in fluid. The vertical scales of each image are

Polymer blend lithography: A versatile method to fabricate nanopatterned self-assembled monolayers

• Cheng Huang,
• Markus Moosmann,
• Jiehong Jin,
• Tobias Heiler,
• Stefan Walheim and
• Thomas Schimmel

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 620–628, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.71

• dissolved by an organic solvent, e.g., tetrahydrofuran. Sample characterization: The polymer blend masks were characterized by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The AFM images were made with a commercial multimode system (DI Multimode IIIa) in tapping mode. The samples

The oriented and patterned growth of fluorescent metal–organic frameworks onto functionalized surfaces

• Jinliang Zhuang,
• Jasmin Friedel and
• Andreas Terfort

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 570–578, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.66

• samples. AFM measurements were performed on a NanoScope DimensionTM 3100 atomic force microscope in tapping mode. FT-IR spectra were recorded with a NICOLET 6700 Fourier transform infrared reflection–absorption spectrometer. For bulk substances a diamond ATR cell was used; for thin films on reflective

Mapping mechanical properties of organic thin films by force-modulation microscopy in aqueous media

• Jianming Zhang,
• Zehra Parlak,
• Carleen M. Bowers,
• Terrence Oas and
• Stefan Zauscher

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 464–474, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.53

• lateral resolution, is ideally suited to map these properties. Intermittent AFM imaging modes, such as tapping mode [22][23][24], and pulsed-force mode [12][25][26][27][28], have been developed for soft, often biological, samples in liquid environments. Although these imaging modes reduce the lateral

• behavior in tapping-mode AFM, in which the amplitude in regime A is typically much larger than that in regime D [51]. In tapping-mode AFM, the cantilever is intentionally actuated at its resonance frequency to achieve a large cantilever amplitude. In FMM, however, the actuation frequency is typically well

Structural, electronic and photovoltaic characterization of multiwalled carbon nanotubes grown directly on stainless steel

• Luca Camilli,
• Manuela Scarselli,
• Silvano Del Gobbo,
• Paola Castrucci,
• Eric Gautron and
• Maurizio De Crescenzi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 360–367, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.42

• was performed in air by using a nonconductive Si tip in tapping mode. After the synthesis process, a piece of SS substrate covered by the as-grown MWCNTs was inserted into an ultrahigh vacuum chamber (base pressure 10−10 torr) for Auger and electron energy-loss measurements. An electron gun as

Drive-amplitude-modulation atomic force microscopy: From vacuum to liquids

• Miriam Jaafar,
• David Martínez-Martín,
• Mariano Cuenca,
• John Melcher,
• Arvind Raman and
• Julio Gómez-Herrero

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 336–344, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.38

• nanoscale resolution. Amplitude-modulation AFM (AM-AFM) [7] and in particular its large-amplitude version, commonly known as tapping mode [8], is the most extended dAFM mode, but it has limitations: Its application to the vacuum environment is very difficult because of the long scanning times imposed by the

Combining nanoscale manipulation with macroscale relocation of single quantum dots

• Francesca Paola Quacquarelli,
• Richard A. J. Woolley,
• Martin Humphry,
• Jasbiner Chauhan,
• Philip J. Moriarty and
• Ashley Cadby

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 324–328, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.36

• per square micron on the patterned sapphire substrate was achieved. For AFM imaging and manipulation we used an Asylum MFP-3D atomic force microscope in tapping mode (imaging) or contact mode (manipulation) with AC240TS Olympus AFM cantilevers. Several cells were imaged over a large scan, typically 20

Nano-FTIR chemical mapping of minerals in biological materials

• Sergiu Amarie,
• Paul Zaslansky,
• Yusuke Kajihara,
• Erika Griesshaber,
• Wolfgang W. Schmahl and
• Fritz Keilmann

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 312–323, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.35

• scattering near-field microscope based on AFM (NeaSNOM, neaspec.com) equipped with a standard metalized tip (NCPt arrow, nanoandmore.com). It is operated in AFM tapping mode to modulate the near-field interaction between the tip and sample, and records the backscattered infrared signal simultaneously with

Wavelet cross-correlation and phase analysis of a free cantilever subjected to band excitation

• Francesco Banfi and
• Gabriele Ferrini

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 294–300, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.33

• of the superposition of spectral contributions generated at different times. In amplitude-modulation AFM (tapping mode) wavelet analysis is useful to track the time evolution of the nonlinearities in tip–surface dynamics. The wavelet analysis allows one to follow more than a single flexural mode

Mesoporous MgTa₂O₆ thin films with enhanced photocatalytic activity: On the interplay between crystallinity and mesostructure

• Jin-Ming Wu,
• Igor Djerdj,
• Till von Graberg and
• Bernd M. Smarsly

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 123–133, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.13

• . Atomic force microscopy (AFM) investigations were conducted with a Nanoscope III, Digital Instruments, in tapping mode. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images were taken with a Zeiss EM 912Ω instrument at an acceleration voltage of 120 kV. The small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and X-ray

Self-assembly of octadecyltrichlorosilane: Surface structures formed using different protocols of particle lithography

• ChaMarra K. Saner,
• Kathie L. Lusker,
• Zorabel M. LeJeune,
• Wilson K. Serem and
• Jayne C. Garno

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 114–122, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.12

• models 5420 and 5500 scanning probe microscopes operated in contact or tapping-mode AFM. (Agilent Technologies, Chandler, AZ). Lateral force images were acquired for either the trace or retrace views corresponding to the scan direction of the selected topography frames. The color scales of lateral-force

• images indicate differences in tip–surface interactions, but were not normalized for the comparison of friction changes between different tips or experiments. The tips were silicon nitride probes. Tips used with tapping-mode AFM were rectangular shaped ultrasharp silicon tips that have an aluminium

Direct monitoring of opto-mechanical switching of self-assembled monolayer films containing the azobenzene group

• Einat Tirosh,
• Enrico Benassi,
• Silvio Pipolo,
• Marcel Mayor,
• Michal Valášek,
• Veronica Frydman,
• Stefano Corni and
• Sidney R. Cohen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 834–844, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.93

• . Tapping mode AFM measurements were carried out in air with a Multimode Nanoscope V AFM (Veeco, Woodbury, NY). Integrated Si tips (Olympus AC240, resonance frequency ca. 70 kHz) were used for these measurements. Images of the morphology of bare Au and the azobenzene on Au on Si samples are shown in Figure

• acquisition of the tapping-mode image. This is done by analysis of higher harmonics in the oscillating cantilever signal in order to extract full force versus distance curves. A full description of the technique can be found in the literature [19][25]. Since the force curves and stiffness data are derived

Self-organizing bioinspired oligothiophene–oligopeptide hybrids

• Alexey K. Shaytan,
• Eva-Kathrin Schillinger,
• Elena Mena-Osteritz,
• Sylvia Schmid,
• Pavel G. Khalatur,
• Peter Bäuerle and
• Alexei R. Khokhlov

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 525–544, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.57

• force microscopy (AFM) as a powerful tool to visualize superstructures in the nano- and micrometer regime [22][23]. The substrate employed was muscovite mica, and tapping mode was chosen for scanning. For deprotection, the triblock oligothiophene–oligopeptide compound 1 (Scheme 1) was first treated with

Tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopic imaging of patterned thiol monolayers

• Johannes Stadler,
• Thomas Schmid,
• Lothar Opilik,
• Phillip Kuhn,
• Petra S. Dittrich and
• Renato Zenobi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 509–515, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.55

• investigated Raman bands. Each pixel in the TERS experiments corresponds to one spectrum from an area of roughly 25 nm in diameter. In measurements with larger pixel to pixel distances, only the probed area contributed to the respective Raman spectrum. (a), (c) 30/10 μm AFM tapping mode phase images of

• of the spectroscopic image in (a). (c) 120 s reference SERS spectrum of 2-PySH (blue) and 2 s TERS spectra from (a) on the thiol (red) and on the bare gold surface (black). Spectra have been offset (red) and rescaled (blue) for better visibility. 20 μm tapping mode AFM image of microcontact printed 2