Magnetic field enhanced nano-tip fabrication for four-probe STM studies

Simulation-guided nanofabrication of high-quality practical tungsten probes

Micro/nanoscale tungsten probes are widely utilized in the fields of surface analysis, biological engineering, etc. amongst several others. This work performs comprehensive dynamic simulations on the influences of electric field distribution, surface tension and the bubbling situation on electrochemical etching behaviors, and then the tip dimension. Results show that the etching rate is reliant on the electric field distribution determined by the cathode dimension. The necking position lies in the meniscus rather than at the bottom of the meniscus. A bubble-free condition is mandatory to stabilize the distribution of OH- and WO4 2- ions for a smooth tungsten probe surface. Such simulation-guidance enables the nanofabrication of probes with a high aspect ratio (10 : 1), ultra-sharp tip apex (40 nm) and ultra-smooth surface. These probes have been successfully developed for high-performance application with Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM). The acquired decent atomic resolution images of epitaxial bilayer graphene robustly verify the feasibility of the practical level application of these nanoscale probes. Therefore, these nanoscale probes would be of great benefit to the development of advanced analytical science and nano-to-atomic scale experimental science and technology.

Precipitation and surface adsorption of metal complexes during electropolishing. Theory and characterization with X-ray nanotomography and surface tension isotherms

Using X-ray nano-tomography, a gel-like phase formed at the tungsten surface during electropolishing was discovered and attributed to a complex process of precipitation and sintering of tungsten-based nuclei.

Mechanically stable tuning fork sensor with high quality factor for the atomic force microscope

A quartz tuning fork was used instead of cantilever as a force sensor for the atomic force microscope. A tungsten tip was made by electrochemical etching from a wire of 50 µm diameter. In order to have mechanical stability of the tuning fork, it was attached on an alumina plate. The tungsten tip was attached on the inside end of a prong of a tuning fork. The phase shift was used as a feedback signal to control the distance between the tip and sample, and the amplitude was kept constant using a lock-in amplifier and a homemade automatic gain controller. Due to the mechanical stability, the sensor shows a high quality factor (∼10(3)), and the image quality obtained with this sensor was equivalent to that of the cantilever-based AFM.

Fabrication and characterization of gold nano-wires templated on virus-like arrays of tobacco mosaic virus coat proteins

The rod-shaped plant virus tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) is widely used as a nano-fabrication template, and chimeric peptide expression on its major coat protein has extended its potential applications. Here we describe a simple bacterial expression system for production and rapid purification of recombinant chimeric TMV coat protein carrying C-terminal peptide tags. These proteins do not bind TMV RNA or form disks at pH 7. However, they retain the ability to self-assemble into virus-like arrays at acidic pH. C-terminal peptide tags in such arrays are exposed on the protein surface, allowing interaction with target species. We have utilized a C-terminal His-tag to create virus coat protein-templated nano-rods able to bind gold nanoparticles uniformly. These can be transformed into gold nano-wires by deposition of additional gold atoms from solution, followed by thermal annealing. The resistivity of a typical annealed wire created by this approach is significantly less than values reported for other nano-wires made using different bio-templates. This expression construct is therefore a useful additional tool for the creation of chimeric TMV-like nano-rods for bio-templating.

Four-probe electrical characterization of Pt-coated TMV-based nanostructures

The electrical transport and structural properties of tobacco mosaic virus (TMV)-based nanostructures have been studied. Electroless deposition was used to coat the TMV outer surface with a 13 nm thick homogeneous Pt layer. SEM, TEM and electrical characterization of the obtained nanostructures has been performed. Using four independently controlled scanning tunnelling microscope tips we were able to perform four-point probe resistance measurements on linear virus assemblies and demonstrate the continuous nature of the metallic coating. The measured resistivity values of the virial nanowires exceeded the bulk value by 10-100 times; notwithstanding this the coated structure allowed high current densities, of the order of 10(5)-10(8) A cm(-2). The four-probe technique proved to be useful for analysing the electrical properties of bio-inorganic nanowires.