Functionalized Nanocrystalline Diamond-Coated AFM Tips

Michael E. Drew, Benjamin Delamare, Robert W. Carpick, Russ Composto, Yoko Yamakoshi

Nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) is recently getting the attentions of many material chemists due to its stability and robustness. Because of its functionalization possibility by photochemical reaction with alkene group, NCD has potential as wide varieties of functional material.

We have been working on the development of robust chemical funcionalization methods of AFM tip surface for such applications as single molecular force spectroscopy measurement and nano-lithography. Compared to the common AFM material such as gold, NCD can provide much stable way of the functionalization through strong C-C covalent bonding. In the past year, we have developed and confirmed the funcionalization of NCD-AFM tip by the photochemical reaction with undecylenic acid (UA) to apply the adhesion force measurement and acid-catalyzed conversion reaction of polymer surface.

chemical identification of the surface by adhesion force measurement by chemically functionalized NCD-AFM tip