Modular MEMS Experimental Platform for Transmission Electron Microscopy

We present a modular MEMS experimental platform compatible with transmission electron microscope (TEM) systems that includes 4 probes with positional control suitable to contact nanoscale objects, four-point electrical measurement capability, force sensing capabilities, and unprecedented mechanical stability for low vibration positioning. Ultra-sharp conductive tips are a critical feature enabling several applications, and two approaches have been successfully demonstrated to obtain tip radii below 50nm: the first approach involves microassembly and electrochemical etching of a tungsten probe on a MEMS positioner, and the second approach is in-situ ion milling of silicon tips with a focused ion beam (FIB) instrument. The electrochemical probe etching process is the first reported post-processing of a heterogeneous assembled microsystem.