Solver p47 scanning probe microscope

The a-C:H:SiO_x coating thickness was studied by Calotest technique using a CAT-S-0000 Calotest machine (CSEM, Neuchâtel, Switzerland) with a steel ball of diameter 35 mm with 1 µm abrasion by diamond particles. The FEI Quanta 200 3D dual beam system (FEI Company, Hillsboro, OR, USA) combining a scanning electron microscope coupled with an energy dispersive X-ray analyzer (SEM/EDX) and a focused ion beam microscope was used to characterize the morphology and microstructure of thin films. The accelerating voltage was 20 kV. The elemental composition of the obtained films was examined in the area of 350 × 250 µm. For the statistical summary report, the elemental composition was analyzed at least in 5 randomly sampled regions. The surface morphology and roughness were studied in a 15 × 15 µm area using a Solver P47 scanning probe microscope (SPM) (NT-MDT, Moscow, Russia) in a tapping mode. The surface defects of as-deposited a-C:H:SiO_x films and the Rockwell hardness were examined on a Polar-1 metallographic microscope (Mikromed, Moscow, Russia) in the reflected polarized light.

All AFM images were taken on dried samples in air with an NT-MDT Solver P47 scanning probe microscope (Zelenograd, Russia) in tapping mode. A 100 μm × 100 μm scanner was used throughout the AFM experiment. The silicon cantilever was purchased from NT-MDT. The cantilever has a resonance frequency of ∼100 kHz and a nominal force constant of ∼3 N/m. The AFM measurement samples were prepared using the following protocol: a 10 µL sample was taken out of the incubation vial and immediately diluted 400 times with deionized water. 10 µL of the diluted solution was dropped onto a piece of freshly cleaved mica. After 3 min waiting time, the sample solution was rinsed off with deionized water. The mica sample was further dried in an oven at 37 °C for at least 2 h and the dried mica surface was subjected to AFM measurement. AFM images were analyzed by NT-MDT software, NOVA.