Design and implementation of a low-cost atomic force microscope (AFM) = Diseño y fabricación de un microscopio de fuerza atómica (AFM) de altas prestaciones y bajo coste

Abstract

The last century was characterized by the extreme developing of the technology, being an essential part in our modern society. This evolution couldn’t be possible without the support of the electronics, resulting in the creation of the microelectronics. This field needs a high-resolution microscopy to verify the manufacturing processes. Advances in microscopy technology, resulted in, amongst many other inventions, the atomic force microscope (AFM). The atomic force microscope is a kind of scanning probe microscope. It is a high precision device capable of making topographies with nanometer resolution, by detecting the deflection caused by atomic interactions. This project aims at the developing of a low-cost AFM with a performance comparable to a commercial AFM, based in an optical pick-up unit (OPU) being the head of the microscope. This project covers the software and hardware design. The nano-positioners which drive the sample movement, are replaced with piezoelectric buzzers. In order to achieve that, a study of the implied electronics and the needed control is made. A 3D printed stage with nanometer resolution displacements is manufactured and the printed circuit boards (PCB’s) are mounted. After assembling it, their proper functioning is proved. The mechanical parts of the microscopes were made using a 3D printer. The OPU proved to be a suitable device for high precision measurements. The developed electronics control the AFM with nanometer resolution. The designed low-cost AFM has a performance close to a commercial one, although control software was not implemented