Dresden 2026 – wissenschaftliches Programm

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O: Fachverband Oberflächenphysik

O 44: Scanning probe techniques: Method development – Poster

O 44.14: Poster

Dienstag, 10. März 2026, 14:00–16:00, P2

Realizing Spin-Polarized Scanning Tunneling Microscopy for an Atomic-Scale Study — •Leon Bojunga, Felix Otto, Jonas Brandhoff, Maximilian Schaal, Christian Haberland, Lorenz Brill, and Torsten Fritz — Institute of Solid State Physics, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Helmholtzweg 5, 07743 Jena, Germany

Spin-polarized scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy (SP-STM/STS) is a powerful tool for investigating spin structures with real-space resolution down to the atomic scale. By combining a spin-sensitive tip with controlled magnetic fields at cryogenic temperatures, SP-STM/STS enables the study of phenomena such as Kondo resonances, spin excitations, organic radicals, and magnetism. Realizing SP-STM/STS requires, beyond standard low-temperature STM stability, a magnetically sensitive tip and a precisely tunable external magnetic field. In this work, we fabricate Ni tips by electrochemical etching and verify their apex geometry via SEM to ensure high quality. This is achieved using a home-built etching setup that enables a reproducible process with consistent results. Testing of the fabricated tips is carried out using an STM at cryogenic temperatures, which, together with a perpendicular magnetic field of up to 3 T, allows controlled magnetization of the tip. To assess the magnetic sensitivity and spatial resolution of the Ni tips, we employ Co bilayer islands on Cu(111), whose well-defined magnetic structure provides an ideal benchmark for validating tip polarization and imaging performance.

Keywords: SP-STM; STS; SEM