Nanotechnology: A Gentle Introduction to the Next Big Idea

Tools to Make Nanostructures

The Return of Scanning Probe Instruments

Scanning probe instruments can be used not just to see structures but also to manipulate them. The dragging finger analogy is useful again here. Just as you can scratch, dimple, or score a soft surface as you drag your finger along it, you can also modify a surface with the tip of a scanning probe.

Scanning probes were used to manipulate the individual molecule beads on the molecular abacus in Figure 1.3. They have also been used to make wonderful nanoscale graffiti by arranging atoms or molecules on surfaces with particular structures. These structures have been used to demonstrate and test some fundamental scientific concepts ranging through structural chemistry, electrical ...