Currently we are setting up a system for measurements with atomic force microscopy (AFM), especially for magnetic exchange force microscopy and spectroscopy (MExFM, MExFS).
300mK UHV scanning tunneling microscope facility with 12 T magnet
We have 3He based and fully ultra-high vacuum compatible scanning tunneling microscope facilities available. The figure shows our first machine of that kind, which was home-built using an Oxford Instruments cryostat.
Direct access 4Helium bath cryostat setups are both reliable and versatile. They are ideal for spin-polarized STM studies of nanoscale structures at moderate magnetic fields.
This lab is used for atomic force microscopy and spectroscopy experiments with magnetic sensitivity. Initially, it was set-up to perform magnetic force microscopy (MFM) with relatively large scan ranges on manganites and superconductors.
The system build in an accoustic chamber and on a separate foundation provides an UHV-environment in which STM and STS can be performed at T=6 K and in magnetic fields up to B=6 T perpendicular and up to B=2 T parallel to the sample surface.
Research on magnetic nanostructures often calls for an application of external magnetic fields. So, in recent years, many new STM systems dedicated to spin-polarized experiments were equipped with superconducting magnets.
The home-built variable-temperature STM (VT-STM) is specifically designed for the study of temperature-dependent magnetic phenomena between 20 K and 300 K by means of SP-STM.