Characterization of Thin Dielectric Films with Atomic Force Microscopy

       _{PRESENTATION HIGHLIGHTS:}

• [00:00:00] Introduction to the AFM technique

• [00:01:09] Typical applications in dielectrics

• [00:03:54] Electrical properties measurable by AFM

• [00:04:53] Conductive AFM (C-AFM)

• [00:06:29] Tunneling-AFM (TUNA)

• [00:12:34] DataCube TUNA
  

       _{PRESENTATION HIGHLIGHTS:}

• [00:00:11] Instrument setup and sample

• [00:01:30] Software configuration

• [00:02:52] Data acquisition

• [00:04:07] Generating an I-V curve

• [00:05:54] Data images and interpretation
  

       _{PRESENTATION HIGHLIGHTS:}

• [00:00:14] Scanning Microwave Impedance Microscopy (sMIM)

• [00:06:47] Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy (KPFM)

• [00:09:15] Extract ε from capacitance measurements between the tip and sample

• [00:10:40] Electrostatic Force Microscopy (EFM)
  

       _{PRESENTATION HIGHLIGHTS:}

• [00:00:00] Experimental setup

• [00:02:16] Data acquisition

• [00:05:14] Generating capacitance-distance curves
  

       _{PRESENTATION HIGHLIGHTS:}

• [00:00:11] Measurements on cross-sectioned devices

• [00:00:59] PiezoResponse Force Microscopy (PFM)

• [00:03:17] Chemical property characterization by AFM-IR

• [00:05:58] Other techniques for characterizing dielectric materials
  

       _{PRESENTATION HIGHLIGHTS:}

• [00:00:00] What is the difference between C-AFM and TUNA and what is the maximum TUNA current?
• [00:01:06] Can one get similar conductive AFM graphs on wide band gap semiconductors?
• [00:01:48] How many I-V curves are recorded per pixel and is the I-V curve generated an average of multiple recordings?
• [00:02:57] Are these kinds of conductivity measurements with TUNA also possible on materials that are less insulating or more bulky? (e.g., low band gap semiconductors, like silicon substrates or germanium)
• [00:04:11] Is it possible to use KPFM to estimate the size of the depletion region in a PNP semiconductor device structure via the static charge distribution?
• [00:05:51] What are the challenges for electrical measurements on softer samples and biological samples (e.g., neuronal cells that are also known to conduct electrical signals)?
• [00:07:58] What materials can be detected by AFM-IR (on the Dimension IconIR system)?