PPP-NCSTPt

PointProbe® Plus Non-Contact / Soft Tapping Mode - PtIr5 Coating

The PointProbe® Plus (PPP) combines the well-known features of the proven PointProbe® series such as high application versatility and compatibility with most commercial SPMs with a further reduced and more reproducible tip radius as well as a more defined tip shape.
NANOSENSORS™ PPP-NCSTPt AFM probes are designed for non-contact or soft tapping mode imaging. The combination of soft cantilever and fairly high resonance frequency enables stable and fast measurements with reduced tip-sample interaction. This feature significantly reduces tip wear and sample wear at the same time.

The probe offers unique features:

Metallic conductivity of the tip

Radius of curvature better than 25 nm

Tip height 10 - 15 µm

High mechanical Q-factor for high sensitivity


The PtIr5 coating is an approximately 25 nm thick double layer of chromium and platinum iridium5 on both sides of the cantilever. The tip side coating enhances the conductivity of the tip and allows electrical contacts. The detector side coating enhances the reflectivity of the laser beam by a factor of about 2 and prevents light from interfering within the cantilever. The coating process is optimized for stress compensation and wear resistance. The bending of the cantilever due to stress is less than 3.5% of the cantilever length.

Please note: Wear at the tip can occur if operating in contact-, friction- or force modulation mode.

Cantilever Specifications
Spring k (N/m	7.4 (1.2 - 29)
Freq (kHz)	160 (75 - 265)
Length (µm)	150 (140 - 160)
Width (µm)	27 (19.5 - 34.5)
Thickness (µm)	2.8 (1.8 - 3.8)
Shape	rectangular
Material	Silicon
Reflex Coating (nm)	Cr/PtIr (5/25)

Tip Specifications
Tip radius (nm)	25
Tip height (µm)	12.5 +/- 2.5
Front angle (°)	25 +/- 2
Back angle (°)	15 +/- 2
Side angle (°)	22.5 +/- 2
Tip shape	4-sided
Tip material	Silicon
Tip coating (nm)	Cr/PtIr (5/25)