Nanoworld Ag

Thomas Sulzbach

Christoph Richter

Oliver Krause

Mathieu Burri

Manfred Detterbeck

Wolfgang Engl

Bernd Irmer

Christian Penzkofer

Laure Aeschimann

Hans-Juergen Luedge

A micro-mechanical component including a support element and a cantilever with integrated electrical functional element to which at least two electrical supply lines implemented as printed conductors on the cantilever are routed. The invention proposes to arrange at least one each of the supply lines on the two opposite flat surfaces of the cantilever and/or the support element. The functional element is supplied by the first supply line on a first flat surface, with the second supply line on the opposite flat surface serving as return line.

Micro-mechanical component with cantilever integrated electrical functional element

A method of manufacturing an SPM probe having a support element, a cantilever, and a scanning tip on an underside of the cantilever, and having a mark located on the top side of the cantilever opposite the scanning tip. The mark on the top side of the cantilever is located exactly opposite the scanning tip on the underside of the cantilever. This makes it possible to identify the exact position of the scanning tip in the scanning probe microscope from the upward-pointing top side of the cantilever, which significantly simplifies the alignment of the SPM probe. The support element with the cantilever may be prefabricated conventionally and the scanning tip and the mark are then produced on the cantilever in a self-aligning way by means of a particle-beam-induced material deposition based on a gas-induced process.

Method of manufacturing an SPM probe with a scanning tip and with an alignment aid located opposite the scanning tip

An SPM probe with an elongated support element and a cantilever projecting beyond the front face of the support element and carrying a scanning tip, with the cantilever arranged at a front face side of the support element of the probe, protruding there from a front face side flank, and with the support element having an essentially trapezoidal cross-section with a longer and a shorter transverse edge at the face side flank, and also with critical corners at one of the transverse edges of the face side flank that are closest to a sample during the scanning process, wherein the support element has an elongated raised portion extending in the longitudinal direction of the support element and of the cantilever, with the raised portion having an essentially trapezoidal cross-section, and with the cantilever arranged on the face side on a narrow transverse edge of the raised portion of the support element, and with the raised portion with the cantilever arranged preferably at the longer transverse edge of the face side flank of the support element, and with the plane extending between the scanning tip and a theoretical straight line passing through one of the critical corners, parallel to the lateral longitudinal edges of the underside of the support element, forming an angle of tilt of at least 5 degrees relative to the transverse edge.

SPM probe with shortened cantilever

Growing community of inventors

Weisendorf, Germany

Thomas Sulzbach