Electron-Beam Excited Conductive Atomic Force Microscopy for Back Contact Free, Wafer-Scale and In-Line Compatible...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Surface Science

Background:

• Electrical atomic force microscopies (AFMs) are crucial for 2D material quality assessment, offering high-resolution electrical mapping and defect analysis.
• Conductive AFM (C-AFM) excels at identifying nanoscale defects but requires a complex, time-consuming sample back-contact, hindering in-line metrology.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and validate a novel electron-beam (e-beam) excited conductive atomic force microscopy (EBC-AFM) technique.
• To demonstrate EBC-AFM's capability to perform electrical mapping without physical back-contact.
• To showcase EBC-AFM's potential for in-line metrology and wafer-scale characterization of 2D materials.

Main Methods:

• Development of a new EBC-AFM configuration utilizing a low-energy e-beam impinging on the sample surface.
• Systematic study of e-beam parameters and their influence on C-AFM measurements.
• Application of EBC-AFM to various 2D materials for defect assessment and electrical mapping.

Main Results:

• EBC-AFM achieves comparable sensitivity to traditional C-AFM.
• The technique successfully maps electrical properties and defects in 2D materials without back-contact.
• Demonstrated feasibility for characterizing isolated flakes and wafer-scale 2D materials.

Conclusions:

• EBC-AFM offers a versatile, non-destructive electrical characterization method for 2D materials.
• This technique overcomes the limitations of traditional C-AFM, enabling new applications in materials science.
• EBC-AFM is a promising tool for in-line quality control and large-area characterization of 2D materials.