Abstract
Accurately measuring the coefficient of friction (COF) is the fundamental prerequisite of superlubricity research. This study aimed to reduce the COF measurement resolution Δμ of atomic force microscopy (AFM). Based on the theoretical model, a distinctive strategy was adopted to reduce Δμ by optimizing the cantilever’s cross-section of the AFM probe, inspired by civil engineering. Δμ can be reduced by decreasing the width of the horizontal side wR and the wall thickness t and increasing the width of the vertical side wH. Moreover, the I-shape demonstrates the highest reduction in Δμ, followed by the U-shape. Considering the processability, the AFM probe with the U-shaped cross-sectional cantilever was investigated further, and the dimensions are 35 µm wR, 3.5 µm wH, 0.5 µm t, 50 µm l (cantilever length), and 23 µm htip (tip height). The finite element analysis results confirm its reliability. After being fabricated and calibrated, the AFM probe achieves the minimal Δμ of 1.9×10−6 under the maximum normal force so far. Additionally, the friction detection capability of the fabricated AFM probe improves by 78 times compared to the commercial tipless-force modulation mode (TL-FM) AFM probe with the conventional solid rectangular cross-sectional cantilever. This study provides a powerful tool for measuring 10−6 COF.
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Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful for the financial support by the National Key R&D Program of China (2020YFA0711001), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51975488, 51991373, and 52235004).
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The authors have no competing interests to declare that are relevant to the content of this article. The author Linmao QIAN is the Editorial Board Member of this journal. The author Liang JIANG is the Youth Editorial Board Member of this journal.
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Yushan CHEN. He received his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in 2019 from Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, China. He is currently a Ph.D. candidate in mechanical engineering at the same university. His research interest includes nanotribology related to chemical mechanical polishing.
Liang JIANG. He works in mechanical engineering at Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, China. He received his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in 2009 from Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, China, and his Ph.D. degree in mechanical engineering in 2015 from Tsinghua University, Beijing, China. During 2010–2012, he studied as a joint Ph.D. student at Clarkson University, Potsdam, NY, USA. After then, he joined the faculty at Southwest Jiaotong University in 2015. His research interest includes chemical mechanical polishing. He can be reached at jiangliang@swjtu.edu.cn.
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Chen, Y., Jiang, L. & Qian, L. AFM probe with the U-shaped cross-sectional cantilever for measuring the ultra-low coefficient of friction of 10−6. Friction 12, 1707–1715 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40544-023-0821-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40544-023-0821-z