NANOTEC and LMS Instrument acknowledging the importance of AFM (Atomic Force Microscopy) to nanotechnology development recently organized a workshop on “Advanced Materials characterization by AFM Technique” to provide up date information on the advancement of AFM technology. The speaker was Dr. Thomas Henze from JPK Instruments (Germany). Attending the workshop were representatives from private sector and research institutions. 

It is not possible to talk about nanotechnology development without mentioning AFM (Atomic Force Microscopy) as the two are like fork and spoon ie, they go hand in hand. AFM  has become the most widely used tool for imaging, measuring and manipulating matter at the nanoscale and in turn has inspired a variety of other scanning probe techniques. Some people may argue that AFM helps to spear head the advancement of nanotechnology we know today. 

Originally AFM was used to image the topography of surfaces, but by modifying the tip it is possible to measure other quantities (for example, electric and magnetic properties, chemical potentials, friction and so on), and also to perform various types of spectroscopy and analysis. 

The Nano Characterization Lab at NANOTEC uses AFM to provide testing and nano analysis services for both internal and external clients. To date, over 6000 technical testing services has been performed by the lab.