title: Haptic-STM: a human-in-the-loop interface to a scanning tunneling microscope.
abstract: The operation of a haptic device interfaced with a scanning tunneling microscope (STM) is presented here. The user moves the STM tip in three dimensions by means of a stylus attached to the haptic instrument. The tunneling current measured by the STM is converted to a vertical force, applied to the stylus and felt by the user, with the user being incorporated into the feedback loop that controls the tip-surface distance. A haptic-STM interface of this nature allows the user to feel atomic features on the surface and facilitates the tactile manipulation of the adsorbate/substrate system. The operation of this device is demonstrated via the room temperature STM imaging of C(60) molecules adsorbed on an Au(111) surface in ultra-high vacuum.
authors.affiliation: School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, United Kingdom. luis.perdigao@nottingham.ac.uk
authors.forename: Luís M A
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Perdigão
authors.forename: Alex
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Saywell