LiNbO₃ Resonators for High Resolution AFM

Many atomic and Sub-atomic resolution atomic force microcopy studies have been published in the past two decades. The probes at the heart of these studies, however, are not state-of-the-art resonators when compared to the advances in MEMS over the same period of time. Higher quality factor (Q) and operational frequency (f₀) resonators confer significantly reduced noise levels and improved resolution to AFM systems. In this talk I will detail the design, simulation, fabrication, and measurement of high Q and f₀ piezoelectric resonators made from LiNbO₃. LiNbO₃ naturally offers a great platform for such resonators with large pizeolectric coupling and acoustic velocities. With the implementation of phononic crystal cavities, we significantly increase Q in our system beyond previous designs. These resonators achieve Q*f₀ figures of merit multiple orders of magnitude higher than existing probes for AFM, and offer to greatly improve the ease of achieving sub-atomic resolution scanning probe measurements.