Abstract
Detection of x-ray-enhanced electrons emitted by synchrotron radiation with the tip of a scanning tunneling microscope has the potential to open a path to high-resolution microscopy with chemical sensitivity. Nonresonant photoejected electrons typically yield a current background of a few hundred picoamperes at a bare tip. Coating the tip with an insulating boron nitride film can effectively reduce this background. In this configuration, we have quantitatively studied the bias dependent photoelectron collection for tip/sample separations of 400-1600 nm, where quantum mechanical tunneling does not contribute.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 193510 |
| Journal | Applied Physics Letters |
| Volume | 92 |
| Issue number | 19 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2008 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Funding
We thank Vitali Metlushko for the growth of the studied multilayer films. Matthias Bode is acknowledged for valuable discussions. This work was supported by the U. S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, under Contract No. DE-AC02-06CH11357.