Abstract
The current distribution in a material is one of the significant parameter in determining the performance of electrical devices. As the components of these devices continue to miniaturize, measuring local properties have become more challenging to researchers and device engineers. Therefore, an advanced method that can provide an accurate and repeatable measurement in nanoscale level is of great importance. Conductive AFM (C-AFM) is uniquely suited to perform electrical measurements such as current distribution with nanoscale precision and can be performed in contact mode, tapping mode, or PinPoint™ mode. Here we perform C-AFM using a Park Systems AFM on Zinc Oxide Nanorods, which have been widely studied due to their remarkable performance in electronics, optics, photonics, and photocatalysis. We compare traditional C-AFM performed in contact mode with tapping and Park’s proprietary PinPoint™ mode. We demonstrate that C-AFM in PinPoint™ mode provides information that correlates nanorod size to conductivity, which could not be obtained using C-AFM operating in the other modes. The advanced mechanism of this mode eliminates high frictional force and allows user to control the contact time and force, which enables high resolution imaging of the ZnO NRs.
