Ten years of atomic force microscopy in glass research

Abstract

This review shows that AFM (Atomic force microscopy), together with affiliated scanning microscopies, can address many different problems of glass science and technology. It has to be considered both as an analytical tool and as a research instrument. Because it is versatile and relatively easy to operate, AFM is appropriate for the observation of the morphology of surfaces of glass and coatings and for the evaluation of their quality in terms of defects and roughness. But, for glass surfaces and inorganic coatings, the recently introduced Field-Emission Scanning Electron Microscope may be preferred because of the absence of almost any artifact and because the field of view is wider. The interaction of the AFM tip with the sample, that is an inherent factor of the technique, is a source of artifacts that need experience to be avoided. In the case of soft matter, such as liquids or low viscosity organic layers, the AFM has no competitor. AFM is also the only instrument advisable for rigorous roughness measurements at lateral scales below 100 nanometers. The capacity for in situ observations in a wide diversity of environments, from ultra-high vacuum to liquid medium, places AFM on the first rank among experimental techniques for the study of corrosion and aging. AFM still has a strong potential in basic research on glass. We can expect that it will play a major role in the determination of the structure of glass at the atomic and mean-range scales, and in the understanding of atomistic and dissipation mechanisms involved in glass fracture and in glass-polymer adhesion as well.