Sample-and-hold Imaging for fast scanning in atomic force microscopy

We have proposed to use a sample-and-hold circuit for direct monitoring of cantilever deflection signals as a novel method for fast imaging in an intermittent contact mode atomic force microscopy (AFM). This method enables us to construct a quasi-topographic image from tip heights at moments when the tip taps on a sample surface. As a result, we obtained the tip height image well corresponding to the sample topography at a scanning rate above 30 Hz/line without any other customization on both a cantilever and a piezo scanner in a commercial AFM system.