Georgia Tech inventors have created a fabrication method for Fabry-Perot etalon structures used in integrated displacement sensors/actuators for probe microscopy. The method uses wafer bonding methods so that commercially available dielectric mirror processors can be utilized to form the sensor structures. The force sensor structure can comprise a cantilever and a force sensor positioned on a free end of the cantilever. The force sensor can comprise a gap formed by a detection surface at the free end of the cantilever and at least one sidewall for positioning a flexible mechanical structure a first distance from the detection surface.
- Fast actuation
- Allows for integration of sensor cantilevers
- Scanning over topography during lithography and fast imaging applications
- Forming sensor structures
- Scanning probe microscopy
- Nanoindentation
- Drug discovery
- Proteomics measurements
Conventional atomic force microscope (AFM) and its variations have been used to probe a wide range of physical and biological processes, including mechanical properties of single molecules, electric and magnetic fields of single atoms and electrons. Moreover, cantilever based structures inspired by the AFM have been a significant driver for nanotechnology resulting in chemical sensor arrays, various forms of lithography tools with high resolution, and terabit level data storage systems. Despite the current rate of success, the AFM needs to be improved in terms of speed, sensitivity, and an ability to generate quantitative data on the chemical and mechanical properties of the sample.
