An atomic force microscope using optical lever detection has been used to study the friction between muscovite mica and a tungsten tip. The frictional force is shown to vary laterally with the periodicity of the hexagonal layer of SiO4 units that forms the cleavage plane of mica. The frictional force varies linearly with normal force, giving a coefficient of friction of 0.09.
A force microscope is described which uses a fiber-optic interferometer as the cantilever displacement sensor. Low thermal drift and reduced susceptibility to laser frequency variation are achieved due to the small (several micrometer) size of the interferometer cavity. A sensitivity of 1.7×10−4 Å/(Hz)1/2 is observed for frequencies above 2 kHz. The drift rate of the sensor is on the order of 3 Å/min. As an initial demonstration, laser-written magnetic domains in a thin film sample of TbFeCo were imaged.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.