Fabrication of a Switchable Dual AFM Cantilever through a Large Deflection using Magneto-strictive Film

In this study, we fabricated and characterised a prototype dual atomic force microscopic cantilever with a large deflectable structure using an Fe65Pd35 magneto-strictive film for cantilever switching. A zigzag-shaped 5-µm-thick liquid delivering cantilever was designed to reduce its stiffness. Moreover, multiple Fe65Pd35 (2 µm) with Si (5 µm) beams were placed on its both sides to generate large cantilever deflections. The imaging cantilever (Fe65Pd35 2 µm / Si 2 µm thick, 170 µm long) and the hollow cantilever (5 µm thick) were deflected above 1 and 2 µm, respectively, by applying 300 G magnetic flux along the longitudinal direction of the cantilever. In addition, the resonance frequencies of the imaging and hollow cantilevers were 89.2 and 65.2 kHz, respectively. The delivering cantilever showed no resonant peak when the imaging cantilever was resonating at approximately 89 kHz. Furthermore, the vibration amplitude of the delivering cantilever was within 300-500 nm when it was resonating at its resonant frequency, which was sufficiently small to avoid the contact of the cantilever tip with the sample surface as it was being deflected away from the surface by magneto-striction.