Abstract
A micro-step XYθ stage mechanism has been developed. This stage consists of three piezoelectric tube actuators fixed at one end to the vertices of an equilateral triangle on a baseplate. When a single cosine waveform voltage is applied to the three actuators, the quick bending motions in the same direction cause the sample to move forward by frictional force; quick bending motions tangential to the circumscribed circle cause the sample to rotate by frictional force. This stage can drive the sample two-dimensionally and rotate it in μm-order steps. The stage facilitates the positioning of the point to be measured in scanning probe microscopes (SPM). Subsequently, the sample is moved by the same actuators in the usual scanning mode and in precision Z-direction positioning. Thus this stage can be used as a micro-step XYθ stage and as a precision XYZ positioning stage, and also used as a micro-step XYθ stage for positioning a sample in optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy.
