Conductive Atomic Force Microscopy (C-AFM)

Conductive AFM (C-AFM) is an AFM technique that simultaneously maps surface topography and local electrical current at the nanoscale. A conductive tip in contact with the sample measures current flow as a function of position, revealing spatial variations in conductivity, resistance, and charge transport at nanometer-scale resolution.

Standard C-AFM measures current only — resistance must be inferred indirectly, which introduces significant inaccuracy. Its dynamic range is typically limited to a few decades (nA to µA), meaning highly resistive regions saturate or disappear from the map. High contact forces required to maintain current flow also risk damaging soft or fragile samples such as battery materials, 2D materials, or organic films.

ResiScope™ goes beyond C-AFM in three fundamental ways. First, it measures resistance directly and quantitatively at every pixel — not just current. Second, its 10-decade dynamic range (10² to 10¹² Ω, fA to µA) covers both conductive and insulating regions in a single scan without saturation. Third, its Soft-ResiScope mode enables measurements at very low contact forces, preserving fragile samples that standard C-AFM would damage.

Yes — ResiScope™ is a direct upgrade to standard C-AFM. It performs everything C-AFM does, and adds direct resistance mapping, 10× wider dynamic range, real-time auto-gain control, and soft-mode operation. Researchers who switch from C-AFM to ResiScope™ gain quantitative resistance data and full dynamic range without changing their workflow.

ResiScope™ covers 10 full decades of resistance — from 10² to 10¹² Ω — and detects currents from femtoamperes (fA) to microamperes (µA) in a single pass. Standard C-AFM systems typically cover 4–5 decades and require manual gain switching or multiple scans. ResiScope™'s real-time DSP auto-gain system handles the full range automatically.

ResiScope™ is optimized for solid-state batteries (mapping both conductive active particles and resistive binders/electrolytes), semiconductors and nanoelectronics (failure analysis, leakage current), 2D materials (graphene, MoS₂, hBN), photovoltaic cells (grain boundary analysis, defect mapping), organic electronics, thin films, and polymers. Any application requiring electrical characterization across a wide conductivity range benefits from ResiScope™'s 10-decade range.

Soft-ResiScope combines ResiScope™ electrical measurements with Soft-IC mode — a friction-free, constant-force approach where the tip approaches, holds, measures, then retracts at each pixel without lateral contact. This eliminates friction-induced artifacts and sample damage, making it ideal for battery separators, solid electrolytes, organic films, 2D materials, and any soft or layered sample where standard contact-mode scanning would deform or destroy the surface.

SSRM operates in a narrow resistance range (typically up to 10⁶–10⁷ Ω), requires high contact forces that damage soft materials, and measures current only. ResiScope™ measures resistance directly from 10² to 10¹² Ω, operates at low forces with Soft-ResiScope, and delivers quantitative resistance values at every pixel. For battery materials and heterogeneous samples, ResiScope™ provides complete characterization in a single scan where SSRM would require multiple setups.

Yes. ResiScope™ is available as a native mode on CSI's Nano-Observer II and Nano-Observer One Plus standalone AFMs, and as an upgrade for existing third-party AFM systems via the Galaxy Dual Controller — compatible with Bruker Multimode/Dimension, Keysight/Agilent 5500/5100/54x0/5600, and other legacy platforms.

For researchers requiring the widest dynamic range, direct quantitative resistance mapping, and non-destructive measurements on sensitive samples, ResiScope™ on CSI's Nano-Observer II or Nano-Observer One Plus is the most capable solution available. Unlike competing C-AFM implementations limited to 4–5 decades, ResiScope™ covers 10 full decades of resistance in a single pass, with femtoampere sensitivity and real-time auto-gain — simultaneously providing topography, current, and direct resistance maps without saturation or gain switching.

A conventional C-AFM amplifier has one gain, chosen before the scan, covering roughly four decades. Areas more conductive than that range clip at the amplifier limit (often around 10 nA) and areas below it are lost in the noise. ResiScope avoids this by re-choosing the gain at every measured point, over 10 decades.

Yes. On the Nano-Observer II, ResiScope (current and resistance) and HD-KFM (single-pass KPFM surface potential) can be run on the same area without moving the sample, to correlate conductivity with work function.