Force field analysis suggests a lowering of diffusion barriers in atomic manipulation due to presence of STM tip.

We study the physics of atomic manipulation of CO on a Cu(111) surface by combined scanning tunneling microscopy and atomic force microscopy at liquid helium temperatures. In atomic manipulation, an adsorbed atom or molecule is arranged on the surface using the interaction of the adsorbate with substrate and tip. While previous experiments are consistent with a linear superposition model of tip and substrate forces, we find that the force threshold depends on the force field of the tip.

Surface structure. Subatomic resolution force microscopy reveals internal structure and adsorption sites of small iron clusters.

Clusters built from individual iron atoms adsorbed on surfaces (adatoms) were investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM) with subatomic resolution. Single copper and iron adatoms appeared as toroidal structures and multiatom clusters as connected structures, showing each individual atom as a torus. For single adatoms, the toroidal shape of the AFM image depends on the bonding symmetry of the adatom to the underlying structure [twofold for copper on copper(110) and threefold for iron on copper(111)].

CO tip functionalization inverts atomic force microscopy contrast via short-range electrostatic forces.

We investigate insulating Cu2N islands grown on Cu(100) by means of combined scanning tunneling microscopy and atomic force microscopy with two vastly different tips: a bare metal tip and a CO-terminated tip. We use scanning tunneling microscopy data as proposed by Choi, Ruggiero, and Gupta to unambiguously identify atomic positions. Atomic force microscopy images taken with the two different tips show an inverted contrast over Cu2N.

qPlus magnetic force microscopy in frequency-modulation mode with millihertz resolution.

Magnetic force microscopy (MFM) allows one to image the domain structure of ferromagnetic samples by probing the dipole forces between a magnetic probe tip and a magnetic sample. The magnetic domain structure of the sample depends on the alignment of the individual atomic magnetic moments. It is desirable to be able to image both individual atoms and domain structures with a single probe.