Vol 17, No 3-4 (2024)

A new method of updating the needle of a scanning probe microscope by sputtering different materials on it has been developed, tested and optimised. Experiments on sputtering different metals on the needle were performed, scans were taken with this needle in a scanning tunnelling microscope before and after sputtering metals on it, and the change in resolving power after sputtering metals as the main parameter of the microscope was evaluated. The new method of probe updating was developed for the world’s first space scanning tunnelling microscope, but it is also applicable for probe microscopes of other types, for example, for atomic force microscopes, as well as for various applications of probe microscopes in general, including those operating in vacuum chambers for various purposes.

The study of the morphology of objects and their mechanical characteristics makes it possible to detect the unique properties of cells and associate these features with development under normal conditions or in the presence of pathologies. To measure the surface of a sample, scanning capillary microscopy (SCM) uses an electrolyte-filled capillary with a nano-sized hole at the tip as a probe. The main advantage of SCM is the non-contact visualization of the biological objects topography in the natural environment – scanning is carried out without forceful contact of the probe tip with the sample surface. Additionally, SCM can be used to determine electrical charges at the solid-liquid interface. In this article, we describe the basics of SCM, its capabilities for imaging cells, and measuring the biomechanical properties of living samples.

This paper describes a device for express measurement of plate tilt angles and angles between faces of plates transparent in the visible range in the visible radiation range. The range of values of angles, which can be measured by this setup, is calculated. Measurements and calculations of reflection coefficients of samples from silicon, sapphire, quartz and polymethyl methacrylate, the surfaces of which have different roughness, allowed us to formulate a restriction on the quality of the surface under study: the rms roughness should not exceed 50 nm.

The most comprehensive information about microstructure of the sample can be obtained by combining different types of high-resolution microscopy. This combination turns out to be especially informative when measurements are carried out not only on the same image, but on the same area of the sample. This approach is called correlation microscopy. Typically, such experiments require careful preparation of the sample and transferring it between the two microscopes. The current work uses correlation microscopy which combines scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). Electrospun gelatin fibers deposited onto metallized glass are studied using these two methods. The possibility of using correlation analysis to combine images obtained by SEM and CLSM is demonstrated.

Samples of nanosized manganese dioxide stabilized with alkyldimethylbenzylammonium chloride were obtained by chemical deposition. During optimization, it was revealed that for the synthesis of manganese dioxide nanoparticles with an average hydrodynamic radius of less than 1200 nm, the optimal synthesis parameters are: temperature from 20 to 35 °C, KMnO₄ mass from 4 to 5 g and stabilizer concentration from 4 to 5%. Study of the samples using scanning electron microscopy showed that a sample of nano-sized manganese dioxide stabilized with alkyldimethylbenzylammonium chloride is formed by irregularly shaped aggregates ranging in size from 1 to 75 μm, which consist of nanoparticles with a diameter from 50 to 250 nm. The structure was studied using X-ray diffractometry and it was found that the resulting sample has a tetragonal crystal lattice with space group I4/m; presence of this phase is indicated by presence of low-intensity broadened peaks. As a result of analyzing the data obtained by modeling the interaction of the alkyldimethylbenzylammonium chloride molecule and manganese oxide through the nitrogen, it was established that the presented compounds are energetically favorable (∆E = 1299.571 kcal/mol), and interaction occurs through nitrogen. This compound has a chemical hardness value η ≥ 0.030 eV, which indicates its stability. As a result of the analysis of the IR-spectra of alkyldimethylbenzylammonium chloride and nano-sized manganese dioxide stabilized by alkyldimethylbenzylammonium chloride, it can be concluded that interaction between alkyldimethylbenzylammonium chloride and manganese dioxide occurs through nitrogen.