Harald Fuchs - Böcker

This volume examines the physical and technical foundation for recent progress in applied near-field scanning probe techniques. It constitutes a timely comprehensive overview of SPM applications, now that industrial applications span topographic and dynamical surface studies of thin-film semiconductors, polymers, paper, ceramics, and magnetic and biological materials. After laying the theoretical background of static and dynamic force microscopies, including sensor technology and tip characterization, contributions detail applications such as macro- and nanotribology, polymer surfaces, and roughness investigations. The final part on industrial research addresses special applications of scanning force nanoprobes such as atomic manipulation and surface modification, as well as single electron devices based on SPM. Scientists and engineers either using or planning to use SPM techniques will benefit from the international perspective assembled in the book.

The Nobel Prize of 1986 on Sc- ningTunnelingMicroscopysignaled a new era in imaging. The sc- ning probes emerged as a new - strument for imaging with a p- cision suf?cient to delineate single atoms. At ?rst there were two – the Scanning Tunneling Microscope, or STM, and the Atomic Force Mic- scope, or AFM. The STM relies on electrons tunneling between tip and sample whereas the AFM depends on the force acting on the tip when it was placed near the sample. These were quickly followed by the M- netic Force Microscope, MFM, and the Electrostatic Force Microscope, EFM. The MFM will image a single magnetic bit with features as small as 10nm. With the EFM one can monitor the charge of a single electron. Prof. Paul Hansma at Santa Barbara opened the door even wider when he was able to image biological objects in aqueous environments. At this point the sluice gates were opened and a multitude of different instruments appeared. There are signi?cant differences between the Scanning Probe Microscopes or SPM, and others such as the Scanning Electron Microscope or SEM. The probe microscopes do not require preparation of the sample and they operate in ambient atmosphere, whereas, the SEM must operate in a vacuum environment and the sample must be cross-sectioned to expose the proper surface. However, the SEM can record 3D image and movies, features that are not available with the scanning probes.

The Nobel Prize of 1986 on Sc- ning Tunneling Microscopy sig- led a new era in imaging. The sc- ning probes emerged as a new i- trument for imaging with a pre- sion suf?cient to delineate single atoms. At ?rst there were two – the Scanning Tunneling Microscope, or STM, and the Atomic Force Mic- scope, or AFM. The STM relies on electrons tunneling between tip and sample whereas the AFM depends on the force acting on the tip when it was placed near the sample. These were quickly followed by the - gneticForceMicroscope,MFM,and the Electrostatic Force Microscope, EFM. The MFM will image a single magnetic bit with features as small as 10nm. With the EFM one can monitor the charge of a single electron. Prof. Paul Hansma at Santa Barbara opened the door even wider when he was able to image biological objects in aqueous environments. At this point the sluice gates were opened and a multitude of different instruments appeared. There are signi?cant differences between the Scanning Probe Microscopes or SPM, and others such as the Scanning Electron Microscope or SEM. The probe microscopes do not require preparation of the sample and they operate in ambient atmosphere, whereas, the SEM must operate in a vacuum environment and the sample must be cross-sectioned to expose the proper surface. However, the SEM can record 3D image and movies, features that are not available with the scanning probes.

The Nobel Prize of 1986 on Sc- ningTunnelingMicroscopysignaled a new era in imaging. The sc- ning probes emerged as a new - strument for imaging with a p- cision suf?cient to delineate single atoms. At ?rstthere were two -the ScanningTunnelingMicroscope,or STM,andtheAtomicForceMic- scope, or AFM. The STM relies on electrons tunneling between tip and sample whereas the AFM depends on the force acting on the tip when itwasplacednearthesample.These were quickly followed by the M- netic Force Microscope, MFM, and the Electrostatic Force Microscope, EFM.TheMFMwillimageasinglemagneticbitwithfeaturesassmallas10nm. WiththeEFMonecanmonitorthechargeofasingleelectron.Prof.PaulHansma atSantaBarbaraopenedthedoorevenwiderwhenhewasabletoimagebiological objects in aqueous environments. At this point the sluice gates were opened and amultitudeofdifferentinstrumentsappeared. There are signi?cant differences between the Scanning Probe Microscopes or SPM, and others such as the Scanning Electron Microscope or SEM.The probe microscopes do not require preparation of the sample and they operate in ambient atmosphere, whereas, the SEM must operate in a vacuum environment and the sample must be cross-sectioned to expose the proper surface. However, the SEM canrecord3Dimage andmovies, featuresthatarenotavailable withthescanning probes. TheNearFieldOpticalMicroscopeorNSOMisalsomemberofthisfamily.At thistimetheinstrumentsuffersfromtwolimitations;1)mostoftheopticalenergy is lost as it traverses the cut-off region of the tapered ?ber and 2) the resolution is insuf?cient for many purposes. We are con?dent that NSOM's with a reasonable opticalthroughputandaresolutionof10nmwillsoonappear.TheSNOMwillthen enterthemainstreamofscanningprobes. VI Foreword In the Harmonic Force Microscope or HFM, the cantilever is driven at the resonantfrequencywiththeamplitudeadjustedsothatthetipimpactsthesampleon each cycle. Theforcesbetween tipandsample generate multiple harmonics inthe motionofthecantilever.Thestrengthoftheseharmonicscanbeusedtocharacterize thephysicalpropertiesofthesurface.

The scanning probe microscopy ?eld has been rapidly expanding. It is a demanding task to collect a timely overview of this ?eld with an emphasis on technical dev- opments and industrial applications. It became evident while editing Vols. I–IV that a large number of technical and applicational aspects are present and rapidly - veloping worldwide. Considering the success of Vols. I–IV and the fact that further colleagues from leading laboratories were ready to contribute their latest achie- ments, we decided to expand the series with articles touching ?elds not covered in the previous volumes. The response and support of our colleagues were excellent, making it possible to edit another three volumes of the series. In contrast to to- cal conference proceedings, the applied scanning probe methods intend to give an overview of recent developments as a compendium for both practical applications and recent basic research results, and novel technical developments with respect to instrumentation and probes. The present volumes cover three main areas: novel probes and techniques (Vol. V), charactarization (Vol. VI), and biomimetics and industrial applications (Vol. VII). Volume V includes an overview of probe and sensor technologies including integrated cantilever concepts, electrostatic microscanners, low-noise methods and improved dynamic force microscopy techniques, high-resonance dynamic force - croscopy and the torsional resonance method, modelling of tip cantilever systems, scanning probe methods, approaches for elasticity and adhesion measurements on the nanometer scale as well as optical applications of scanning probe techniques based on near?eld Raman spectroscopy and imaging.

The scanning probe microscopy ?eld has been rapidly expanding. It is a demanding task to collect a timely overview of this ?eld with an emphasis on technical dev- opments and industrial applications. It became evident while editing Vols. I–IV that a large number of technical and applicational aspects are present and rapidly - veloping worldwide. Considering the success of Vols. I–IV and the fact that further colleagues from leading laboratories were ready to contribute their latest achie- ments, we decided to expand the series with articles touching ?elds not covered in the previous volumes. The response and support of our colleagues were excellent, making it possible to edit another three volumes of the series. In contrast to to- cal conference proceedings, the applied scanning probe methods intend to give an overview of recent developments as a compendium for both practical applications and recent basic research results, and novel technical developments with respect to instrumentation and probes. The present volumes cover three main areas: novel probes and techniques (Vol. V), charactarization (Vol. VI), and biomimetics and industrial applications (Vol. VII). Volume V includes an overview of probe and sensor technologies including integrated cantilever concepts, electrostatic microscanners, low-noise methods and improved dynamic force microscopy techniques, high-resonance dynamic force - croscopy and the torsional resonance method, modelling of tip cantilever systems, scanning probe methods, approaches for elasticity and adhesion measurements on the nanometer scale as well as optical applications of scanning probe techniques based on near?eld Raman spectroscopy and imaging.

The success of the Springer Series Applied Scanning Probe Methods I–VII and the rapidly expanding activities in scanning probe development and applications worldwide made it a natural step to collect further speci c results in the elds of development of scanning probe microscopy techniques (Vol.

The success of the Springer Series Applied Scanning Probe Methods I–VII and the rapidly expanding activities in scanning probe development and applications worldwide made it a natural step to collect further speci c results in the elds of development of scanning probe microscopy techniques (Vol. VIII), characterization (Vol. IX), and biomimetics and industrial applications (Vol. X). These three volumes complement the previous set of volumes under the subject topics and give insight into the recent work of leading specialists in their respective elds. Following the tradition of the series, the chapters are arranged around techniques, characterization and biomimetics and industrial applications. Volume VIII focuses on novel scanning probe techniques and the understanding of tip/sample interactions. Topics include near eld imaging, advanced AFM, s- cializedscanningprobemethodsinlifesciencesincludingnewselfsensingcantilever systems, combinations of AFM sensors and scanning electron and ion microscopes, calibration methods, frequency modulation AFM for application in liquids, Kelvin probe force microscopy, scanning capacitance microscopy, and the measurement of electrical transport properties at the nanometer scale. Vol. IX focuses on characterization of material surfaces including structural as well as local mechanical characterization, and molecular systems. The volume covers a broad spectrum of STM/AFM investigations including fullerene layers, force spectroscopy for probing material properties in general, biological lms .and cells, epithelial and endothelial layers, medical related systems such as amyloidal aggregates, phospholipid monolayers, inorganic lms on aluminium and copper - ides,tribological characterization, mechanical properties ofpolymernanostructures,technical polymers, and near eld optics.

The success of the Springer Series Applied Scanning Probe Methods I–VII and the rapidly expanding activities in scanning probe development and applications worldwide made it a natural step to collect further speci c results in the elds of development of scanning probe microscopy techniques (Vol. VIII), characterization (Vol. IX), and biomimetics and industrial applications (Vol. X). These three volumes complement the previous set of volumes under the subject topics and give insight into the recent work of leading specialists in their respective elds. Following the tradition of the series, the chapters are arranged around techniques, characterization and biomimetics and industrial applications. Volume VIII focuses on novel scanning probe techniques and the understanding of tip/sample interactions. Topics include near eld imaging, advanced AFM, s- cializedscanningprobemethodsinlifesciencesincludingnewselfsensingcantilever systems, combinations of AFM sensors and scanning electron and ion microscopes, calibration methods, frequency modulation AFM for application in liquids, Kelvin probe force microscopy, scanning capacitance microscopy, and the measurement of electrical transport properties at the nanometer scale. Vol. IX focuses on characterization of material surfaces including structural as well as local mechanical characterization, and molecular systems. The volume covers a broad spectrum of STM/AFM investigations including fullerene layers, force spectroscopy for probing material properties in general, biological lms .and cells, epithelial and endothelial layers, medical related systems such as amyloidal aggregates, phospholipid monolayers, inorganic lms on aluminium and copper - ides,tribological characterization, mechanical properties ofpolymernanostructures,technical polymers, and near eld optics.

"The ability to accurately and reproducibly measure the properties and perf- mance characteristics of nanoscale materials, devices, and systems is a critical enabler for progress in fundamental nanoscience, in the design of new nanoma- rials, and ultimately in manufacturing new nanoscale products [1]. " This quotation from the US National Nanotechnology Initiative emphasizes the need for measu- ment tools in emerging nanomaterial applications, a eld predicted to generate a multibillion-dollar market within 10 years. One speci c measurement need is for nanomechanical information-knowledge on the nanoscale of mechanical prop- ties such as elastic modulus, adhesion, and friction. Accurate information is essential not only to predict the performance of a system before use, but also to evaluate its reliability during or after use. The measurement need is motivated partly by the fact that new applications often involve structures with nanoscale dimensions (e. g. , nanoelectromechanical systems, nanoimprint lithography). Measurements of such structures by necessity must provide nanoscale spatial resolution.Other new structures have larger overall dimensions, but integrate disparate materials on the micro- or nanoscale (e. g. , electronic interconnect, nanocomposites). In such cases, nanoscale information is needed in order to differentiate the properties of the various components. Many methods to measure small-scale mechanical properties have been devised, including ones based on indentation [2-4], on ultrasonics [5,6], and on other phy- cal phenomena [7,8]. Such methods often have drawbacks: they are not suf ciently quantitative, are limited to specialized geometries, and so forth.

Crack initiation and growth are key issues when it comes to the mechanical reliab- ity of microelectronic devices and microelectromechanical systems (MEMS). Es- cially in organic electronics where exible substrates will play a major role these issues will become of utmost importance. It is therefore necessary to develop me- ods which in situ allow the experimental investigation of surface deformation and fracture processes in thin layers at a micro and nanometer scale. While scanning electron microscopy (SEM) might be used it is also associated with some major experimental drawbacks. First of all if polymers are investigated they usually have to be coated with a metal layer due to their commonly non-conductive nature. Additi- ally they might be damaged by the electron beam of the microscope or the vacuum might cause outgasing of solvents or evaporation of water and thus change material properties. Furthermore, for all kinds of materials a considerable amount of expe- mental effort is necessary to build a tensile testing machine that ts into the chamber. Therefore, a very promising alternative to SEM is based on the use of an atomic force microscope (AFM) to observe in situ surface deformation processes during straining of a specimen. First steps towards this goal were shown in the 1990s in [1–4] but none of these approaches truly was a microtensile test with sample thicknesses in the range of micrometers. To the authors’ knowledge, this was shown for the rst time by Hild et al. in [5]. 16.

The volumes XI, XII and XIII examine the physical and technical foundation for recent progress in applied scanning probe techniques. The first volume came out in January 2004, the second to fourth volumes in early 2006 and the fifth to seventh volumes in late 2006. The field is progressing so fast that there is a need for a set of volumes every 12 to 18 months to capture latest developments. These volumes constitute a timely comprehensive overview of SPM applications. After introducing scanning probe microscopy, including sensor technology and tip characterization, chapters on use in various industrial applications are presented. Industrial applications span topographic and dynamical surface studies of thin-film semiconductors, polymers, paper, ceramics, and magnetic and biological materials. The chapters have been written by leading researchers and application scientists from all over the world and from various industries to provide a broader perspective.

Essentials from the series "Applied Scanning Probe Methods" are put together in the area of bio and biorelated systems. The contributions spread over all 13 volumes are now combined in this one volume. Thus, the reader will easily find a comprehensive overview of SPM applications for biosystems.For scientists and professionals in academic and industry dealing with surface analytics of plant science, living cells, nanomedicine, cosmetics and biomimetics.

This volume examines the physical and technical foundation for recent progress in applied near-field scanning probe techniques. It constitutes a timely comprehensive overview of SPM applications, now that industrial applications span topographic and dynamical surface studies of thin-film semiconductors, polymers, paper, ceramics, and magnetic and biological materials. After laying the theoretical background of static and dynamic force microscopies, including sensor technology and tip characterization, contributions detail applications such as macro- and nanotribology, polymer surfaces, and roughness investigations. The final part on industrial research addresses special applications of scanning force nanoprobes such as atomic manipulation and surface modification, as well as single electron devices based on SPM. Scientists and engineers either using or planning to use SPM techniques will benefit from the international perspective assembled in the book.

Volumes II, III and IV examine the physical and technical foundation for recent progress in applied near-field scanning probe techniques, and build upon the first volume published in early 2004. The field is progressing so fast that there is a need for a second set of volumes to capture the latest developments. It constitutes a timely comprehensive overview of SPM applications, now that industrial applications span topographic and dynamical surface studies of thin-film semiconductors, polymers, paper, ceramics, and magnetic and biological materials. Volume II introduces scanning probe microscopy, including sensor technology, Volume III covers the whole range of characterization possibilities using SPM and Volume IV offers chapters on uses in various industrial applications. The international perspective offered in these three volumes - which belong together - contributes further to the evolution of SPM techniques.

Volumes II, III and IV examine the physical and technical foundation for recent progress in applied near-field scanning probe techniques, and build upon the first volume published in early 2004. The field is progressing so fast that there is a need for a second set of volumes to capture the latest developments. It constitutes a timely comprehensive overview of SPM applications, now that industrial applications span topographic and dynamical surface studies of thin-film semiconductors, polymers, paper, ceramics, and magnetic and biological materials. Volume II introduces scanning probe microscopy, including sensor technology, Volume III covers the whole range of characterization possibilities using SPM and Volume IV offers chapters on uses in various industrial applications. The international perspective offered in these three volumes - which belong together - contributes further to the evolution of SPM techniques.

The Nobel Prize of 1986 on Sc- ningTunnelingMicroscopysignaled a new era in imaging. The sc- ning probes emerged as a new - strument for imaging with a p- cision suf?cient to delineate single atoms. At ?rstthere were two -the ScanningTunnelingMicroscope,or STM,andtheAtomicForceMic- scope, or AFM. The STM relies on electrons tunneling between tip and sample whereas the AFM depends on the force acting on the tip when itwasplacednearthesample.These were quickly followed by the M- netic Force Microscope, MFM, and the Electrostatic Force Microscope, EFM.TheMFMwillimageasinglemagneticbitwithfeaturesassmallas10nm. WiththeEFMonecanmonitorthechargeofasingleelectron.Prof.PaulHansma atSantaBarbaraopenedthedoorevenwiderwhenhewasabletoimagebiological objects in aqueous environments. At this point the sluice gates were opened and amultitudeofdifferentinstrumentsappeared. There are signi?cant differences between the Scanning Probe Microscopes or SPM, and others such as the Scanning Electron Microscope or SEM.The probe microscopes do not require preparation of the sample and they operate in ambient atmosphere, whereas, the SEM must operate in a vacuum environment and the sample must be cross-sectioned to expose the proper surface. However, the SEM canrecord3Dimage andmovies, featuresthatarenotavailable withthescanning probes. TheNearFieldOpticalMicroscopeorNSOMisalsomemberofthisfamily.At thistimetheinstrumentsuffersfromtwolimitations;1)mostoftheopticalenergy is lost as it traverses the cut-off region of the tapered ?ber and 2) the resolution is insuf?cient for many purposes. We are con?dent that NSOM's with a reasonable opticalthroughputandaresolutionof10nmwillsoonappear.TheSNOMwillthen enterthemainstreamofscanningprobes. VI Foreword In the Harmonic Force Microscope or HFM, the cantilever is driven at the resonantfrequencywiththeamplitudeadjustedsothatthetipimpactsthesampleon each cycle. Theforcesbetween tipandsample generate multiple harmonics inthe motionofthecantilever.Thestrengthoftheseharmonicscanbeusedtocharacterize thephysicalpropertiesofthesurface.

The scanning probe microscopy ?eld has been rapidly expanding. It is a demanding task to collect a timely overview of this ?eld with an emphasis on technical dev- opments and industrial applications. It became evident while editing Vols. I–IV that a large number of technical and applicational aspects are present and rapidly - veloping worldwide. Considering the success of Vols. I–IV and the fact that further colleagues from leading laboratories were ready to contribute their latest achie- ments, we decided to expand the series with articles touching ?elds not covered in the previous volumes. The response and support of our colleagues were excellent, making it possible to edit another three volumes of the series. In contrast to to- cal conference proceedings, the applied scanning probe methods intend to give an overview of recent developments as a compendium for both practical applications and recent basic research results, and novel technical developments with respect to instrumentation and probes. The present volumes cover three main areas: novel probes and techniques (Vol. V), charactarization (Vol. VI), and biomimetics and industrial applications (Vol. VII). Volume V includes an overview of probe and sensor technologies including integrated cantilever concepts, electrostatic microscanners, low-noise methods and improved dynamic force microscopy techniques, high-resonance dynamic force - croscopy and the torsional resonance method, modelling of tip cantilever systems, scanning probe methods, approaches for elasticity and adhesion measurements on the nanometer scale as well as optical applications of scanning probe techniques based on near?eld Raman spectroscopy and imaging.

The scanning probe microscopy ?eld has been rapidly expanding. It is a demanding task to collect a timely overview of this ?eld with an emphasis on technical dev- opments and industrial applications. It became evident while editing Vols. I–IV that a large number of technical and applicational aspects are present and rapidly - veloping worldwide. Considering the success of Vols. I–IV and the fact that further colleagues from leading laboratories were ready to contribute their latest achie- ments, we decided to expand the series with articles touching ?elds not covered in the previous volumes. The response and support of our colleagues were excellent, making it possible to edit another three volumes of the series. In contrast to to- cal conference proceedings, the applied scanning probe methods intend to give an overview of recent developments as a compendium for both practical applications and recent basic research results, and novel technical developments with respect to instrumentation and probes. The present volumes cover three main areas: novel probes and techniques (Vol. V), charactarization (Vol. VI), and biomimetics and industrial applications (Vol. VII). Volume V includes an overview of probe and sensor technologies including integrated cantilever concepts, electrostatic microscanners, low-noise methods and improved dynamic force microscopy techniques, high-resonance dynamic force - croscopy and the torsional resonance method, modelling of tip cantilever systems, scanning probe methods, approaches for elasticity and adhesion measurements on the nanometer scale as well as optical applications of scanning probe techniques based on near?eld Raman spectroscopy and imaging.

The success of the Springer Series Applied Scanning Probe Methods I–VII and the rapidly expanding activities in scanning probe development and applications worldwide made it a natural step to collect further speci c results in the elds of development of scanning probe microscopy techniques (Vol. VIII), characterization (Vol. IX), and biomimetics and industrial applications (Vol. X). These three volumes complement the previous set of volumes under the subject topics and give insight into the recent work of leading specialists in their respective elds. Following the tradition of the series, the chapters are arranged around techniques, characterization and biomimetics and industrial applications. Volume VIII focuses on novel scanning probe techniques and the understanding of tip/sample interactions. Topics include near eld imaging, advanced AFM, s- cializedscanningprobemethodsinlifesciencesincludingnewselfsensingcantilever systems, combinations of AFM sensors and scanning electron and ion microscopes, calibration methods, frequency modulation AFM for application in liquids, Kelvin probe force microscopy, scanning capacitance microscopy, and the measurement of electrical transport properties at the nanometer scale. Vol. IX focuses on characterization of material surfaces including structural as well as local mechanical characterization, and molecular systems. The volume covers a broad spectrum of STM/AFM investigations including fullerene layers, force spectroscopy for probing material properties in general, biological lms .and cells, epithelial and endothelial layers, medical related systems such as amyloidal aggregates, phospholipid monolayers, inorganic lms on aluminium and copper - ides,tribological characterization, mechanical properties ofpolymernanostructures,technical polymers, and near eld optics.

The success of the Springer Series Applied Scanning Probe Methods I–VII and the rapidly expanding activities in scanning probe development and applications worldwide made it a natural step to collect further speci c results in the elds of development of scanning probe microscopy techniques (Vol. VIII), characterization (Vol. IX), and biomimetics and industrial applications (Vol. X). These three volumes complement the previous set of volumes under the subject topics and give insight into the recent work of leading specialists in their respective elds. Following the tradition of the series, the chapters are arranged around techniques, characterization and biomimetics and industrial applications. Volume VIII focuses on novel scanning probe techniques and the understanding of tip/sample interactions. Topics include near eld imaging, advanced AFM, s- cializedscanningprobemethodsinlifesciencesincludingnewselfsensingcantilever systems, combinations of AFM sensors and scanning electron and ion microscopes, calibration methods, frequency modulation AFM for application in liquids, Kelvin probe force microscopy, scanning capacitance microscopy, and the measurement of electrical transport properties at the nanometer scale. Vol. IX focuses on characterization of material surfaces including structural as well as local mechanical characterization, and molecular systems. The volume covers a broad spectrum of STM/AFM investigations including fullerene layers, force spectroscopy for probing material properties in general, biological lms .and cells, epithelial and endothelial layers, medical related systems such as amyloidal aggregates, phospholipid monolayers, inorganic lms on aluminium and copper - ides,tribological characterization, mechanical properties ofpolymernanostructures,technical polymers, and near eld optics.

The success of the Springer Series Applied Scanning Probe Methods I–VII and the rapidly expanding activities in scanning probe development and applications worldwide made it a natural step to collect further speci c results in the elds of development of scanning probe microscopy techniques (Vol. VIII), characterization (Vol. IX), and biomimetics and industrial applications (Vol. X). These three volumes complement the previous set of volumes under the subject topics and give insight into the recent work of leading specialists in their respective elds. Following the tradition of the series, the chapters are arranged around techniques, characterization and biomimetics and industrial applications. Volume VIII focuses on novel scanning probe techniques and the understanding of tip/sample interactions. Topics include near eld imaging, advanced AFM, s- cializedscanningprobemethodsinlifesciencesincludingnewselfsensingcantilever systems, combinations of AFM sensors and scanning electron and ion microscopes, calibration methods, frequency modulation AFM for application in liquids, Kelvin probe force microscopy, scanning capacitance microscopy, and the measurement of electrical transport properties at the nanometer scale. Vol. IX focuses on characterization of material surfaces including structural as well as local mechanical characterization, and molecular systems. The volume covers a broad spectrum of STM/AFM investigations including fullerene layers, force spectroscopy for probing material properties in general, biological lms .and cells, epithelial and endothelial layers, medical related systems such as amyloidal aggregates, phospholipid monolayers, inorganic lms on aluminium and copper - ides,tribological characterization, mechanical properties ofpolymernanostructures,technical polymers, and near eld optics.

"The ability to accurately and reproducibly measure the properties and perf- mance characteristics of nanoscale materials, devices, and systems is a critical enabler for progress in fundamental nanoscience, in the design of new nanoma- rials, and ultimately in manufacturing new nanoscale products [1]. " This quotation from the US National Nanotechnology Initiative emphasizes the need for measu- ment tools in emerging nanomaterial applications, a eld predicted to generate a multibillion-dollar market within 10 years. One speci c measurement need is for nanomechanical information-knowledge on the nanoscale of mechanical prop- ties such as elastic modulus, adhesion, and friction. Accurate information is essential not only to predict the performance of a system before use, but also to evaluate its reliability during or after use. The measurement need is motivated partly by the fact that new applications often involve structures with nanoscale dimensions (e. g. , nanoelectromechanical systems, nanoimprint lithography). Measurements of such structures by necessity must provide nanoscale spatial resolution.Other new structures have larger overall dimensions, but integrate disparate materials on the micro- or nanoscale (e. g. , electronic interconnect, nanocomposites). In such cases, nanoscale information is needed in order to differentiate the properties of the various components. Many methods to measure small-scale mechanical properties have been devised, including ones based on indentation [2-4], on ultrasonics [5,6], and on other phy- cal phenomena [7,8]. Such methods often have drawbacks: they are not suf ciently quantitative, are limited to specialized geometries, and so forth.

Crack initiation and growth are key issues when it comes to the mechanical reliab- ity of microelectronic devices and microelectromechanical systems (MEMS). Es- cially in organic electronics where exible substrates will play a major role these issues will become of utmost importance. It is therefore necessary to develop me- ods which in situ allow the experimental investigation of surface deformation and fracture processes in thin layers at a micro and nanometer scale. While scanning electron microscopy (SEM) might be used it is also associated with some major experimental drawbacks. First of all if polymers are investigated they usually have to be coated with a metal layer due to their commonly non-conductive nature. Additi- ally they might be damaged by the electron beam of the microscope or the vacuum might cause outgasing of solvents or evaporation of water and thus change material properties. Furthermore, for all kinds of materials a considerable amount of expe- mental effort is necessary to build a tensile testing machine that ts into the chamber. Therefore, a very promising alternative to SEM is based on the use of an atomic force microscope (AFM) to observe in situ surface deformation processes during straining of a specimen. First steps towards this goal were shown in the 1990s in [1–4] but none of these approaches truly was a microtensile test with sample thicknesses in the range of micrometers. To the authors’ knowledge, this was shown for the rst time by Hild et al. in [5]. 16.