MRI: Acquisition of a Controlled-Environment Atomic Force Microscope for Nanoelectronic Characterization

在受控环境手套箱内获得先进的原子力显微镜系统，能够以接近单个原子规模的分辨率对固体表面进行成像，同时测量每个位置的表面性质。这种显微镜提供了直接将表面的结构和性质与其如何制造和性能相关联的能力，这是材料科学和工程研究的核心。这些材料关系为研究人员提供了为一系列应用创造先进材料所需的信息。关键的是，受控环境能力允许对不暴露在空气或潮湿中的材料进行研究。该仪器位于博伊西州立大学表面科学实验室内，扩大了爱达荷州的研究能力，满足了包括五所大学、几个当地行业和两个国家实验室在内的广泛研究社区的需求。主要研究人员有一个经过验证的、严格的和行业公认的模型，用于培训本科生和研究生的原子力显微镜。受控环境显微镜使这些学生接触到当前最先进的仪器，并为他们在研究生院的成功以及在学术界和工业界的职业生涯做好更好的准备。通过积极的社区宣传，新型显微镜展示了先进的材料研究能力，并激励中小学生在科学、技术、工程和数学领域追求职业生涯。可控环境原子力显微镜通过实现空气和湿度敏感材料的先进纳米电子表征，为博伊西州立大学的材料研究提供了重要工具。该系统提供的新功能包括用于纳米级表面电位测量的惰性环境开尔文探针显微镜和用于现场监测电化学反应的扫描电化学显微镜。该显微镜可以在以下方面进行跨学科和协作的材料研究：(1)DNA纳米结构与半导体表面的受控集成，用于存储设备的亚光刻图案化；(2)金属合金腐蚀机制的纳米级起源，以制造高性能航空航天结构部件和生物医学植入物；(3)空气敏感金属离子电池电极的相间演化和电化学活性，以实现稳定、安全和高性能的能量存储；(4)合成和加工条件对用于柔性和高能效电子产品的空气敏感二维材料的电子和热性能的影响；(5)用于极端环境下的新型存储器件的气敏相变材料中离子通道形成的实时观察。

Acquisition of an advanced atomic force microscope system within a controlled environment glove box enables imaging of solid surfaces with a resolution near the scale of individual atoms while simultaneously measuring the properties of the surfaces at each location. This microscope provides the ability to directly relate the structure and properties of a surface to how it was made and how it performs, which lies at the heart of materials science and engineering research. These materials relationships give researchers the information needed to create advanced materials for a range of applications. Critically, the controlled environment capabilities allow research to be performed on materials that cannot be exposed to air or moisture. Housed within the Surface Science Laboratory at Boise State University, this instrument expands research capacity in Idaho and meets the needs of a broad research community, including five universities, several local industries, and two national laboratories. The principal investigators have a proven, rigorous, and industry-recognized model for training undergraduate and graduate students in atomic force microscopy. The controlled-environment microscope exposes these students to the current state-of-the-art instrument and better prepares them for success in graduate school and careers in academia and industry. With active community outreach, the new microscope showcases advanced materials research capabilities and inspires elementary and high school students to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.The controlled-environment atomic force microscope provides an important tool for materials research at Boise State University by enabling advanced nanoelectronic characterization of air-and moisture-sensitive materials. The new capabilities provided by this system include inert-environment Kelvin probe microscopy for nanoscale surface potential measurements and scanning electrochemical microscopy for in-situ monitoring of electrochemical reactions. The microscope enables interdisciplinary and collaborative materials research in (1) the controlled integration of DNA nanostructures with semiconductor surfaces for sub-lithographic patterning of memory devices; (2) the nanoscale origins of corrosion mechanisms in metal alloys to enable fabrication of high-performance aerospace structural components and biomedical implants; (3) interphase evolution and electrochemical activity of air-sensitive metal-ion battery electrodes for stable, safe, and high-capability energy storage; (4) the effects of synthesis and processing conditions on the electronic and thermal properties of air-sensitive 2-dimensional materials for flexible and energy-efficient electronics; and (5) real-time observation of ion channel formation in air-sensitive phase change materials for novel memory devices for extreme environments.