Versatile force–feedback manipulator for nanotechnology applications

A nanoscale manipulation system has been designed and built through the integration of a force–feedback haptic device and a commercial atomic force microscope. The force–feedback interaction provides a very intuitive, efficient and reliable way for quick manipulation of nanoscale objects. Unlike other nanomanipulators, ours allows the user to feel the actual tip–sample interaction during the manipulation process. Various modes of manipulation have been implemented and evaluated. As a proof of concept, we show a contact-mode nanomanipulation of a carbon nanotube and a noncontact manipulation of silicon beads. In addition to nanomanipulation itself, all relevant signals can be recorded during the manipulation process which allows quantitative interpretation of nanomechanics experiments.