Urgent repair and upgrade of high-vacuum variable-temperature scanning probe microscope

高真空变温扫描探针显微镜紧急维修升级

• 批准号: RTI-2020-00706
• 负责人: Fanchini, Giovanni
• 金额: $ 10.1万
• 依托单位: University of Western Ontario
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Research Tools and Instruments
• 财政年份: 2019
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2019-01-01 至 2020-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=693513
• 关键词: Urgent; repair; upgrade; vacuum; variable

RTI funds are required to return to a state of research readiness a high-vacuum, variable-temperature scanning probe microscope (SPM). With a moderate investment, the proposed upgrade will bring back to operation an existing piece of equipment originally worth more than four times the requested RTI funds and will double its research lifetime. This instrument is the only one of its kind currently available at Western University, and is vital to carry out a number of time-sensitive projects from the applicant team, for which delicate samples cannot be transported to another location. Such projects include bringing existing industrial partnerships to the next level, as well as enhancing new discovery research by team members in the critical areas of organic materials, surfaces and interfaces, biomaterials growth, and nanoscale electrical transport in the 25K-300K temperature domain. SPMs are a class of imaging techniques that form maps of surface and subsurface features using nanosized physical probes. The Scienta Omicron VT for which urgent repair and upgrade is required is an advanced SPM capable of multiple SPM techniques, including, but not limited to: atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and Kelvin-probe microscopy (KPM). Research activities from applicant team members are highly focused on such techniques, with extensive experience in handling instruments of this kind. In addition, due to the unique expertise of the PI in scanning near-field optical microscopy (SNOM), we are here proposing to use this system for cryogenic SNOM at variable temperature. SNOM is an SPM-based nano-optical technique that is capable to obtain super-resolution images beyond the diffraction limit. Fanchini's group has specific expertise in SNOM imaging of plasmonic nanostructures for solar cell efficiency enhancement, plasmonic optical waveguides, and for contact-free imaging the thermal conductivity of nanostructured thin films at the nanoscale. Super-resolution, contact-free, thermal conductivity imaging at variable temperature will be made possible via cryogenic SNOM. This will open unprecedented opportunities towards the fundamental physical understanding of thermal transport, both electron-driven and phonon-driven, in a host of 2D, nanostructured and organic materials, many of which supplied by co-applicants and collaborators at Western. Research in cryogenic SNOM will be unique to Canada and awaits this repair and upgrade to be carried out. Because SPM techniques do not involve elevated budget costs, they are very popular assets in several non-destructive materials characterization facilities, not only in academia, but also several industry-based R&D centers in the materials manufacturing sector. Thus, the repaired and upgraded high-vacuum, variable-temperature SPM will provide our highly-qualified personnel (HQP) with hands-on and essential experiential training in this highly marketable area of advanced materials characterization.

RTI的资金需要回到一个高真空，变温扫描探针显微镜（SPM）的研究准备状态。通过适度的投资，拟议的升级将使一台现有设备恢复运行，该设备的原始价值是RTI所需资金的四倍多，并将使其研究寿命延长一倍。该仪器是西方大学目前唯一的同类仪器，对于申请团队执行一些时间敏感的项目至关重要，这些项目的精细样品无法运输到另一个地点。这些项目包括将现有的工业伙伴关系提升到一个新的水平，以及加强团队成员在有机材料，表面和界面，生物材料生长以及25 K-300 K温度范围内的纳米电传输等关键领域的新发现研究。SPM是一类成像技术，其使用纳米尺寸的物理探针形成表面和次表面特征的地图。需要紧急维修和升级的Scienta Omicron VT是一种先进的SPM，能够使用多种SPM技术，包括但不限于：原子力显微镜（AFM）、扫描隧道显微镜（STM）和开尔文探针显微镜（KPM）。申请团队成员的研究活动高度集中在这些技术上，在处理此类仪器方面具有丰富的经验。此外，由于PI在扫描近场光学显微镜（SNOM）方面的独特专业知识，我们建议在可变温度下使用该系统进行低温SNOM。SNOM是一种基于SPM的纳米光学技术，能够获得超过衍射极限的超分辨率图像。Fanchini的团队在等离子体纳米结构的SNOM成像方面具有特定的专业知识，用于太阳能电池效率提高，等离子体光波导，以及在纳米尺度下对纳米结构薄膜的热导率进行无接触成像。通过低温SNOM，可以在可变温度下实现超分辨率、无接触、热导率成像。这将为在一系列2D，纳米结构和有机材料中对电子驱动和声子驱动的热传输的基本物理理解提供前所未有的机会，其中许多材料由共同申请人和合作者提供。低温SNOM的研究将是加拿大独有的，等待进行维修和升级。由于SPM技术不涉及高昂的预算成本，它们在几个非破坏性材料表征设施中非常受欢迎，不仅在学术界，而且在材料制造领域的几个工业研发中心。因此，经过维修和升级的高真空、变温SPM将为我们的高素质人员（HQP）提供在先进材料表征这一高度市场化领域的实践和必要的经验培训。