Scanning electrochemical microscope for efficient nanoscopic imaging over macroscopic areas

This technology is a scanning electrochemical microscopic technique that uses non-local probes and advanced signal analysis algorithms to achieve imaging with unprecedented areal scan rates.

Unmet Need: Rapid imaging of large areas by scanning probe microscopy

A prevailing problem of current scanning probe microscopy (SPM) techniques is the trade-off between spatial resolution and scan rate. This limitation arises due to the cumbersome sampling method of conventional SPM techniques that rely on laborious point-by-point sampling. Using this sequential analysis technique, imaging samples larger than 1 mm2 with point probes is often prohibitively inefficient.

The Technology: Non-local scanning probe for imaging large areas at high speeds and resolution

This technology provides a class of non-local scanning probes for SPM which allow for substantial increases in areal imaging rates at a desired resolution. This scanning technique uses one-dimensional probes to simultaneously sense signal from multiple positions in space and employs compressed sensing signal analysis to reconstruct images from the raw signal. This technology provides an effective method for enabling scanning probe microscopes to image large areas with higher resolution and speed than conventional scanning techniques.

This technology has been shown to increase areal scan rates of scanning electrochemical microscopes by over an order of magnitude.

Applications:

• High-throughput scanning probe microscopy for research applications in chemical, physical, and biological sciences
• High-throughput screening of sample arrays
• Imaging defects and other sparse features that are spread out over large areas
• Inline inspection during advanced manufacturing processes
• Imaging of large tissues for diagnostics

Advantages:

• Faster imaging speeds at the same resolution
• Reduced sample scan complexity
• Reduced number of required scans per sample
• Easier fabrication of probes

Lead Inventor:

Daniel Vincent Esposito, Ph.D.

Patent Information:

Patent Issued (US 10,739,378)

Related Publications:

• Dorfi AE, Yan J, Wright J, Esposito DV. “Compressed sensing image reconstruction of scanning electrochemical microscopy measurements carried out at ultrahigh scan speeds using continuous line probes” Anal Chem. 2021 Sep 21; 93(37): 12574-12581.

• Dorfi AE, Kuo HW, Smirnova V, Wright J, Esposito DV. “Design and operation of a scanning electrochemical microscope for imaging with continuous line probes” Rev Sci Instrum. 2019 Aug; 90(8): 083702.

• O’Neil GD, Kuo H, Lomax DN, Wright J, Esposito DV. “Scanning line probe microscopy: beyond the point probe” Anal Chem. 2018 Aug 28; 90(19): 11531-11537.

Tech Ventures Reference:

• IR CU17170

• Licensing Contact: Dovina Qu