Petr Klapetek, Andrew Yacoot, Petr Grolich, Miroslav Valtr, David Nečas
Gwyscan: a library to support non-equidistant Scanning Probe Microscope measurements
Measurement Science and Technology 28 (2017) 034015
We present a tool for enabling easy integration of adaptive step (non-equidistant) scanning techniques into metrological scanning probe microscopes or scanning probe microscopes where individual x, y position data are recorded during measurements. Scanning with adaptive steps can reduce the amount of data collected in SPM measurements thereby leading to faster data acquisition, a smaller amount of data collection required for a specific analytical task and less sensitivity to mechanical and thermal drift. Implementation of adaptive scanning routines into a custom built microscope is not normally an easy task: regular data are much easier to handle for previewing (e.g. levelling) and storage. We present an environment to make implementation of adaptive scanning easier for an instrument developer, specifically taking into account data acquisition approaches that are used in high accuracy microscopes as those developed by National Metrology Institutes. This includes a library with algorithms written in C and LabVIEW for handling data storage, regular mesh preview generation and planning the scan path on basis of different assumptions. A set of modules for Gwyddion open source software for handling these data and for their further analysis is presented. Using this combination of data acquisition and processing tools one can implement adaptive scanning in a relatively easy way into an instrument that was previously measuring on a regular grid. The performance of the presented approach is shown and general non-equidistant data processings steps are discussed.
DOI: 10.1088/1361-6501/28/3/034015
You can also contact one of the authors: yeti@physics.muni.cz