atomic force microscope

American  

noun

plural

atomic force microscopes

1. a high-resolution microscope used to scan and map the features of a surface at the atomic level by means of a probe that registers variations in the interatomic forces acting between it and the surface under examination.

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atomic force microscope Scientific  

1. A microscope that uses a tiny probe mounted on a cantilever to scan the surface of an object. The probe is extremely close to—but does not touch—the surface. As the probe traverses the surface, attractive and repulsive forces arising between it and the atoms on the surface induce forces on the probe that bend the cantilever. The amount of bending is measured and recorded, providing a map of the atoms on the surface. Atomic force microscopes can achieve magnification of a factor of 5 × 10 ⁶, with a resolution of 2 angstroms, sufficient to resolve individual carbon atoms.

2. Also called scanning force microscope

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Example Sentences

The atomic force microscope is a suitable tool for scanning surfaces at an atomic level or investigating interactions between molecules such as food constituents and receptor proteins.

From Science Daily • May 29, 2024

To find out, TU researchers used a very sensitive atomic force microscope.

From Science Daily • Jan. 9, 2024

Gerd Binnig shared the Kavli Prize in Nanoscience in 2016 for inventing the atomic force microscope.

From Scientific American • Sep. 9, 2021

The atomic force microscope enables researchers to image the surfaces of materials at atomic resolution.Credit:

From Nature • Mar. 19, 2018

Using an atomic force microscope and a quaint gadget called the laser tweezer, Bustamante found a way around such limits.

From Time Magazine Archive