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Know your full potential: Quantitative Kelvin probe force microscopy on nanoscale electrical devices

In this study we investigate the influence of the operation method in Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) on the measured potential distribution. KPFM is widely used to map the nanoscale potential distribution in operating devices, e.g., in thin film transistors or on cross sections of functional s...

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Autores principales: Axt, Amelie, Hermes, Ilka M, Bergmann, Victor W, Tausendpfund, Niklas, Weber, Stefan A L
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Beilstein-Institut 2018
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6009372/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29977714
http://dx.doi.org/10.3762/bjnano.9.172
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author Axt, Amelie
Hermes, Ilka M
Bergmann, Victor W
Tausendpfund, Niklas
Weber, Stefan A L
author_facet Axt, Amelie
Hermes, Ilka M
Bergmann, Victor W
Tausendpfund, Niklas
Weber, Stefan A L
author_sort Axt, Amelie
collection PubMed
description In this study we investigate the influence of the operation method in Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) on the measured potential distribution. KPFM is widely used to map the nanoscale potential distribution in operating devices, e.g., in thin film transistors or on cross sections of functional solar cells. Quantitative surface potential measurements are crucial for understanding the operation principles of functional nanostructures in these electronic devices. Nevertheless, KPFM is prone to certain imaging artifacts, such as crosstalk from topography or stray electric fields. Here, we compare different amplitude modulation (AM) and frequency modulation (FM) KPFM methods on a reference structure consisting of an interdigitated electrode array. This structure mimics the sample geometry in device measurements, e.g., on thin film transistors or on solar cell cross sections. In particular, we investigate how quantitative different KPFM methods can measure a predefined externally applied voltage difference between the electrodes. We found that generally, FM-KPFM methods provide more quantitative results that are less affected by the presence of stray electric fields compared to AM-KPFM methods.
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spelling pubmed-60093722018-07-05 Know your full potential: Quantitative Kelvin probe force microscopy on nanoscale electrical devices Axt, Amelie Hermes, Ilka M Bergmann, Victor W Tausendpfund, Niklas Weber, Stefan A L Beilstein J Nanotechnol Full Research Paper In this study we investigate the influence of the operation method in Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) on the measured potential distribution. KPFM is widely used to map the nanoscale potential distribution in operating devices, e.g., in thin film transistors or on cross sections of functional solar cells. Quantitative surface potential measurements are crucial for understanding the operation principles of functional nanostructures in these electronic devices. Nevertheless, KPFM is prone to certain imaging artifacts, such as crosstalk from topography or stray electric fields. Here, we compare different amplitude modulation (AM) and frequency modulation (FM) KPFM methods on a reference structure consisting of an interdigitated electrode array. This structure mimics the sample geometry in device measurements, e.g., on thin film transistors or on solar cell cross sections. In particular, we investigate how quantitative different KPFM methods can measure a predefined externally applied voltage difference between the electrodes. We found that generally, FM-KPFM methods provide more quantitative results that are less affected by the presence of stray electric fields compared to AM-KPFM methods. Beilstein-Institut 2018-06-15 /pmc/articles/PMC6009372/ /pubmed/29977714 http://dx.doi.org/10.3762/bjnano.9.172 Text en Copyright © 2018, Axt et al. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0https://www.beilstein-journals.org/bjnano/termsThis is an Open Access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The license is subject to the Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology terms and conditions: (https://www.beilstein-journals.org/bjnano/terms)
spellingShingle Full Research Paper
Axt, Amelie
Hermes, Ilka M
Bergmann, Victor W
Tausendpfund, Niklas
Weber, Stefan A L
Know your full potential: Quantitative Kelvin probe force microscopy on nanoscale electrical devices
title Know your full potential: Quantitative Kelvin probe force microscopy on nanoscale electrical devices
title_full Know your full potential: Quantitative Kelvin probe force microscopy on nanoscale electrical devices
title_fullStr Know your full potential: Quantitative Kelvin probe force microscopy on nanoscale electrical devices
title_full_unstemmed Know your full potential: Quantitative Kelvin probe force microscopy on nanoscale electrical devices
title_short Know your full potential: Quantitative Kelvin probe force microscopy on nanoscale electrical devices
title_sort know your full potential: quantitative kelvin probe force microscopy on nanoscale electrical devices
topic Full Research Paper
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6009372/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29977714
http://dx.doi.org/10.3762/bjnano.9.172
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