Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM) Of A Diamond-Turned Surface And A Grating Replica

The technique of scanning tunneling microscopy has been applied to topographic mapping of two optical surfaces -- a ruled grating replica and a diamond-turned gold mirror. By taking measurements with both a scanning tunneling microscope and a conventional stylus instrument, we have compared profiles and power spectral density (PSD) functions calculated from the profiles of a grating replica. Furthermore, surface structure was observed and PSD's were calculated for a diamond-turned surface measured with a STM. No structure was detected by the stylus instrument due to the spacing of the grooves on the diamond-turned sample. These measurements yield information necessary to gaining a better understanding of the diamond-turning process.