Why is silicon nitride chosen for the tip material for the cantilevers for AC mode AFM?
First because silicon nitride tip is hard to wear compared with silicon tip which is the most popular tip for AC mode measurement (see left graph). OMCL-HA100WS- series employs Si3N4, or stoichiometric silicon nitride as the tip material. And secondly, silicon nitride is one of the most popular materials in the silicon process. So good cost performance can be achieved. • What is the SiN sharpened wedge tip mainly used for? This tip is recommended as a probe for the inspection procedure of the products that have surface roughness smaller than 200 nm. For measuring polycrystalline silicon film that is used in semiconductor IC, hard and sharp tip is required for stable measurement. Needs for the low wear tip must increase because many customers would like to use AFM as a tool for the inspection of the products and expect reliable inspection system. • I understand that Si3N4 film is hard material in the graph above, but is there any data of long tip lifetime? Variation of the line scan pro
