corner
corner
APS » Journals » Phys. Rev. B » Volume 80 » Issue 13
< Previous Article | Next Article >

Phys. Rev. B 80, 134104 (2009) [5 pages]

Crystalline structure and squeeze-out dissipation of liquid solvation layers observed by small-amplitude dynamic AFM

Download: PDF (276 kB) Buy this article Export: BibTeX or EndNote (RIS)

W. Hofbauer*, R. J. Ho, Hairulnizam R.†, N. N. Gosvami‡, and S. J. O’Shea
Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), 3 Research Link, Singapore 117602, Singapore

Received 13 April 2009; revised 25 June 2009; published 2 October 2009

Using frequency-modulation atomic force microscopy (FM-AFM) at sub-nanometer vibration amplitudes, we find in the system n-dodecanol/graphite that solvation layers may extend for several nanometers into the bulk liquid. These layers maintain crystalline order which can be imaged using FM-AFM. The energy dissipation of the vibrating tip can peak sharply upon penetration of molecular layers. The tip shape appears critical for this effect.

© 2009 The American Physical Society

URL:
http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevB.80.134104
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevB.80.134104
PACS:
68.08.De, 68.15.+e, 68.37.Ps

*wulf-h@imre.a-star.edu.sg

†Also at Department of Mechanical Engineering, National University of Singapore.

‡Present address: Leibniz-Institut für Neue Materialien, 20 Campus D2 2, D-66123 Saarbrücken, Germany.

 
< Previous Article | Next Article >