How to perform an AFM measurement in ScanAsyst® mode on Bruker® AFM systems with Nanoscope® software, using AFM tips - NanoWorld®

Step 1 - select AFM Experiment

• In Choose an Experiment Category: select ScanAsyst®
• In Select Experiment Group: select ScanAsyst® in Air
• In Select Experiment: select ScanAsyst® in Air

Step 2 - disable Smart Engage

• If Engage icon in Workflow Toolbar shows Smart Engage symbol, Smart Engage is enabled
• In Microscope, select Engage Settings
• In Engage Mode dropdown menu change from Smart to Standard. Confirm
• Smart Engage is now disabled

Step 3 - save Experiment

• In Experiment select Save Experiment As
• Save Experiment as e.g. 'ScanAsyst in Air – Standard Engage'
• Use this Experiment in the future

Step 4 - load Experiment

• If steps 1, 2 and 3 have been completed once, when opening NanoScope software again, skip these 3 steps and start directly with step 4
• In Choose an Experiment Category: select ScanAsyst®
• In Select Experiment Group: select ScanAsyst® in Air
• In Select Experiment: select ScanAsyst in Air – Standard Engage
• Smart Engage is now automatically disabled

Step 5 - mount and select AFM probe

• Mount ScanAsyst® probe into AFM probe holder
• In ScanAsyst® in Air select Setup
• In Probe I'll be using select New Probe of type
• From dropdown menu select ScanAsyst HR

Step 6 - adjust laser

• In ScanAsyst® in Air select Setup
• Adjust laser on AFM cantilever
• Adjust laser on detector
• Maximize SUM signal

Step 7 - focus on sample / AFM tip reflection

• In ScanAsyst® in Air select Navigate
• In Focus Sample: select Sample (default) or Tip Reflection
• Focus on sample, respectively on AFM tip reflection, by moving the scan head up or down

Step 8 - set scan size and engage AFM probe

• In ScanAsyst® in Air select Check Parameters
• Adjust Scan Size
• Select Engage

Step 9 - scan sample, check and adjust scan parameters

• Scan the sample
• Check and adjust Scan Size if needed
• Check and adjust Scan Rate (i.e. scan speed) if needed