Torsional spring constant measurement of a T-shaped atomic force microscope cantilever

摘要

We present a microfabricated atomic force microscope (AFM) cantilever that can be used to calibrate AFM friction data. The (T-shaped) lateral force cantilever is equipped with lever-arms that facilitate the application of normal and lateral forces, allowing a calibration to be carried out in situ along with friction measurements. In this work, the torsional spring constant of a T-shaped cantilever has been measured using output data from two different AFM instrument platforms. Torsional spring constant values were found to be within 5percent from one instrument to the other, demonstrating the robustness of the lateral force lever technique.