AFM-IR
delivers nanoscale IR absorption by probing photothermal expansion of sample surfaces
AFM-IR (Atomic Force Microscopy InfraRed) is a family of techniques based on detecting mechanical response of the AFM cantilever upon pulsed illumination of sample with IR light. AFM-IR family includes Tapping and Surface Sensitive AFM-IR, Photoinduced Force Microscopy (PiFM) and Photothermal Expansion Microscopy (PTE, PTIR), primarily utilized for sample absorption mapping and spectroscopy of materials with relatively large absorption coefficient (polymers, organic materials, etc.).
A pulsed laser source is focused on a sample generating photothermal expansion of the absorbing regions near the AFM tip which induces a transient cantilever oscillation proportional to the IR absorption. Patented multimodal detection returns pure infrared absorption maps free of mechanical artifacts – all simultaneously with AFM topography and phase (image size above 10x10 µm).
Technology Benefits
High-quality nanoscale-resolved chemical imaging.
High sensitivity even on ultrathin oxide layers with tapping AFM-IR+.
Sub-10 nm resolution demonstrated on PS-PMMA block copolymer.
No mechanical artifacts in tapping AFM-IR+ images for true optical mapping & hyperspectral analysis.
Excellent sensitivity: AFM-IR+ detects even the weakest vibrational signatures for precise chemical identification.
Excellent reproducibility even for the weakest spectral features and fast acquisition speeds.
