Progress in Atomic Force Microscopy Techniques for Measurements of Local Dynamics at Solid-Liquid Interfaces

Abstract

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) allows us to visualize atomic-scale surface structures at solid-liquid interfaces. However, the speed of the atomic-scale imaging by conventional AFM is limited to ~1 min/frame and hence imaging of dynamic events on the timescale of seconds has remained challenging. Recently, we have improved the imaging speed of AFM to ~1 s/frame without deteriorating the atomic-scale spatial resolution. In this article, I would like to introduce fundamental techniques that enabled this technical innovation and its application example.