In our laboratory, we utilize a specialized instrument known as the “Createc”, a 4-Kelvin Scanning Tunnelling Microscope (STM). Manufactured by the company of the same name, Createc is a crucial tool for atomic imaging, aiding us in our ongoing exploration of material structures and behaviors.
Createc is composed of two primary sections: a preparation chamber and an STM chamber, both are UHV chambers to decrease the rate of sample degradation. The preparation chamber is fitted with a suite of surface science preparation tools, assisting us in the careful preparation of sample materials. These tools include an Ar+ sputtering gun, a low-energy electron diffraction setup, a quadruple mass spectrometer, and an electron beam tip heating tool for tip annealing.
The STM chamber houses the STM head, a component fashioned on the Besocke-type STM-AFM head model. Its 3-legged design confers some thermal drift resistance, a useful feature during long-term spectroscopy measurements. However, this design does limit the Z-axis motion range, a consideration we take into account during our work.
To facilitate the movement of sample crystals and STM tips between the two chambers, we utilize a manipulating arm. This piece of equipment allows for the careful transfer of materials, thus ensuring their integrity and the accuracy of our work.
The Createc STM is instrumental in our investigations of various materials. These include Fe-based unconventional superconductors like LiFeAs, Mott insulators such as Sr2IrO4, topological semimetals like ZrSiTe, and high-mobility semimetals like PtSn4. With Createc, we are equipped to observe a range of surface physics phenomena across a variety of materials.
In summary, Createc provides us with a reliable means to probe into the realm of atomic imaging, offering a necessary level of precision and detail in our explorations of diverse atomic and molecular structures.