Peter Grutter
Understanding O2 bubble nucleation and growth during the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) is crucial to comprehend their influences on catalytically active sites in the process. To achieve this goal, mapping the spatial variation of…
Scanning probe microscopy (SPM) is a valuable technique by which one can investigate the physical characteristics of the surfaces of materials. However, its widespread use is hampered by the time-consuming nature of running an experiment…
Electrocatalytic processes occurring at the heterogeneous interface are complex and their understanding at the molecular level remains challenging. Atomic force microscope (AFM) can detect force interactions down to the atomic level, but so…
The ongoing development of single electron, nano and atomic scale semiconductor devices would benefit greatly from a characterization tool capable of detecting single electron charging events with high spatial resolution, at low…
We use electrostatic force microscopy to spatially resolve random telegraph noise at the Si/SiO$_2$ interface. Our measurements demonstrate that two-state fluctuations are localized at interfacial traps, with bias-dependent rates and…
Reliable operation of frequency modulation mode atomic force microscopy (FM-AFM) depends on a clean resonance of an AFM cantilever. It is recognized that the spurious mechanical resonances which originate from various mechanical components…
A common use for atomic force microscopy is to quantify local forces through tip-sample interactions between the probe tip and a sample surface. The accuracy of these measurements depends on the accuracy to which the cantilever spring…
Inducing an inversion layer in organic semiconductors is a highly nontrivial, but critical, achievement for producing organic field-effect transistor (OFET) devices, which rely on the generation of inversion, accumulation, and depletion…
Theory predicts that two-dimensional (2D) materials may only exist in the presence of out-ofplane deformations on atomic length scales, frequently referred to as ripples. While such ripples can be detected via electron microscopy, their…
Working in the framework of morphoelasticity, we develop a model of neurite growth in response to elastic deformation. We decompose the applied stretch into an elastic component and a growth component, and adopt an observationally-motivated…
The dielectric breakdown approach for forming nanopores has greatly accelerated the pace of research in solid-state nanopore sensing, enabling inexpensive formation of nanopores via a bench top setup. Here we demonstrate the potential of…
Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is an analytical surface characterization tool which can reveal a sample's topography with high spatial resolution while simultaneously probing tip-sample interactions. Local measurement of chemical properties…
Atomic force microscopy (AFM) routinely achieves structural information in the sub-nm length scale. Measuring time resolved properties on this length scale to understand kinetics at the nm scale remains an elusive goal. We present a general…
We review a new implementation of Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) in which the dissipation signal of frequency modulation atomic force microscopy (FM-AFM) is used for dc bias voltage feedback (D-KPFM). The dissipation arises from an…
We report a Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) implementation using the dissipation signal of a frequency modulation atomic force microscopy that is capable of detecting the gradient of electrostatic force rather than electrostatic force.…
Electric charge detection by atomic force microscopy (AFM) with single- electron resolution (e-EFM) is a promising way to investigate the electronic level structure of individual quantum dots (QD). The oscillating AFM tip modulates the…
We report a new experimental technique for Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) using the dissipation signal of frequency modulation atomic force microscopy for bias voltage feedback. It features a simple implementation and faster scanning…
Strong confinement of charges in few electron systems such as in atoms, molecules and quantum dots leads to a spectrum of discrete energy levels that are often shared by several degenerate quantum states. Since the electronic structure is…
Electronic transport properties of Au nano-structure are investigated using both experimental and theoretical analysis. Experimentally, stable Au nanowires were created using mechanically controllable break junction in air, and simultaneous…
Single electron charging in an individual InAs quantum dot was observed by electrostatic force measurements with an atomic force microscope (AFM). The resonant frequency shift and the dissipated energy of an oscillating AFM cantilever were…