Unveiling Surface Secrets: AFM, STM, and XPS
Diving Deep: Unraveling the Secrets of Surfaces with AFM, STM, and XPS The world around us is built on surfaces. From the smooth glass of your phone screen to the intricate grain patterns of wood, every interaction we have with our environment begins at a surface level. But how do we truly understand these interfaces? Enter the realm of surface characterization techniques, powerful tools that allow us to probe the microscopic world and unveil the secrets hidden within surfaces. Today, we'll delve into three key players in this field: Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM), and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). 1. AFM: The Versatile Explorer Imagine a tiny needle, finer than a human hair, scanning across the surface...