JP3313757B2 - Coarse / fine movement mechanism - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a coarse movement mechanism and a fine movement mechanism. In particular, the present invention relates to a coarse and fine movement mechanism used for precise positioning of a scanning tunneling microscope and its application equipment.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, a scanning tunneling microscope (hereinafter referred to as ST) capable of directly observing the electronic structure of surface atoms of a conductor.
M) has been developed and is expected to have a wide range of applications. In addition, an atomic force microscope to which the STM technology is applied has been developed, and it has become possible to observe an atomic sample on an insulating sample. These new microscopes are collectively referred to as scanning probe microscopes (abbreviated as SPM), and in addition to the original use of the microscope, various applications are considered from its principle.

In particular, applications as a recording device for writing information in a recording medium with high resolution and a reproducing device for reading information written in a recording medium with high resolution have been advanced. As described above, in the apparatus to which the STM technology is applied, a high-precision control technique is required in order to bring the probe and the recording medium closer to about 1 nm.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The above SPM and SPM
In an apparatus to which the PM technology is applied, it is necessary to move the probe to a recording / reproducing area on the surface of the recording medium or to relatively scan the probe and the recording medium along the surface of the recording medium. Movement control technology is indispensable. As a result, the coarse movement mechanism and the scanning mechanism become complicated, and there have been problems such as an increase in size of the apparatus and mutual interference between two axes during two-dimensional scanning.

The present invention is applied to a small SPM having a function of an in-plane coarse movement mechanism and a function of a fine movement mechanism and free from mutual interference during relative two-dimensional scanning between a probe and a sample, and an apparatus to which SPM technology is applied. It aims to provide what can be done.

[0006]

To achieve the above object, a coarse movement mechanism according to the present invention comprises a mechanism for guiding a moving member in one direction, a plurality of clamping means for clamping the moving member, and A movable part movable in the moving direction of the moving member, and a pair of telescopic elements for movement provided opposite to each other in the moving direction so as to sandwich the movable part, and at least one of the clamping means is attached to the movable part. It is characterized by being fixed.

Further, a concave portion is provided in the moving member, and the movable member is clamped so as to expand from the inside of the concave portion.

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, a coarse movement fine movement mechanism according to the present invention includes a movable member guided in a uniaxial direction by a guide mechanism and a movable member opposed to the movable direction with the movable member interposed therebetween. A pair of telescopic elements for movement provided and a clamp means for clamping each side of the telescopic element for movement opposite to the moving member side are provided.

Further, in order to achieve the above object, the present invention, when applied to a scanning probe microscope and its application apparatus, a probe, a probe driving means for driving the probe in one axis direction, a sample, And a coarse-movement / fine-movement mechanism in which a sample driving means for driving the sample in a uniaxial direction is configured to relatively move the probe and the sample in a plane.

That is, according to the present invention, a pair of probe-moving telescopic elements provided opposite to each other so that a probe driving means sandwiches a moving member on which a probe is mounted, and a pair of probe-moving telescopic elements which are opposite to the moving member in the direction of expansion and contraction. And a coarse and fine movement mechanism having clamping means for clamping the respective sides. Furthermore, a pair of sample moving telescopic elements provided so that the sample driving means sandwiches the moving member on which the sample is placed, and a side opposite to the moving member in the direction of expansion and contraction of the sample moving telescopic element, respectively. A coarse movement fine movement mechanism having a clamp means for clamping is provided. That is, the scanning probe microscope of the present invention
It has the coarse and fine movement mechanism of the invention.

[0011]

The coarse and fine movement mechanism of the present invention comprises a pair of movable telescopic elements provided so as to sandwich a moving member, and at least one pair of clamps for clamping the movable telescopic element on the side opposite to the movable member. During coarse movement, a pair of moving expansion / contraction elements and one of the pair of clamping means are operated to move the moving member in a worm-like manner to perform coarse feed. Then, at the time of fine movement or scanning, one of the pair of movable expansion / contraction elements is extended while being clamped by the pair of clamping means, and the other is contracted, whereby the movable member is finely fed.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First Embodiment FIG. 1 is a drawing showing the features of the present invention well, and shows a perspective view of the components of the present invention. In the figure, 1 is a moving member, 2 is a linear guide for guiding the moving member 1 in one axial direction, 3 is a clamper for clamping the moving member 1, and 4 is a base for fixing the clamper 3. The linear guide portion 2 includes a set of moving portions 21 attached to the moving member 1, a set of fixed portions 22 attached to the base 4, a V-shaped groove 23 for linearly guiding,
It comprises a ball 24 and a ball retainer 25 (not shown). The clamper 3 includes a clamp expansion / contraction element 31 and a lever for enlarging the movement of the expansion / contraction element (see FIG. 3). The lever uses the elastic hinge portion 32 as a fulcrum and the clamp portion 33 as an action point. The clamp part 33 clamps the moving part 21 fixed to the moving member 1. There are two clampers 3 having the same shape, 30 and 30 ′, which are fixed to the fixed part 41 and the movable part 42 of the base 4, respectively. The base 4 has a clamper attaching portion 41 for attaching the clamper 30 and a clamper attaching portion 42 for attaching the clamper 30 ′. The clamper attaching portion 42 is a part of the movable portion 43, and the movable portion 43 is an elastic hinge portion 44. Are guided in one axial direction by a parallel spring composed of Further, a pair of movable expansion / contraction elements 45 and 45 ′ provided to face each other in the movable direction of the movable section 43 is preloaded in the displacement axis direction by a preload beam 46. That is, the sum of the length of the movable portion 43 in the movable direction and the length of the movable telescopic elements 45 and 45 ′ is slightly longer than the inner dimension between the preload beam portions 46, The pre-load is applied to the telescopic element by inserting the telescopic element for movement into the gap where the elastic element has been elastically deformed. Here, as an expansion element, about 7 μm at an applied voltage of 100 V
A piezoelectric element that performs elongation displacement is used.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the assembled coarse movement mechanism viewed from the moving direction axis of the moving member. The clamper enters the space below the moving member, contributing to a thinner mechanism. Further, it can be clearly seen that the clamp portion 33 of the clamper clamps the opposite side of the linear guide moving portion 21 from the V-shaped groove.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the clamper 3. The clamper 3 includes a clamp extendable element 31 and a lever that expands the movement of the extendable element. The lever uses the steel balls 34 on both sides of the clamp expansion / contraction element 31 as a point of force, the elastic hinge 32 as a fulcrum, and the clamp portion 33 as an action point, and has a leverage of about 5 times. The clamp part 33 clamps the moving part 21 fixed to the moving member 1. The expansion / contraction element for clamping is installed in a state where a preload is applied in the direction of the displacement axis. That is, in FIG.
The dimension A between 1 is slightly shorter than the sum B of the length of the clamping telescopic element, the diameter of the steel ball, and the length of the clamper. As a result, even when no voltage is applied to the clamp expansion / contraction element, the clamp portion 33 is pushed inside the linearly guided moving portion 21 and holds the moving member 1.

The coarse movement will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 shows a procedure for applying a voltage applied to each expansion element. In order from the top of FIG.
1, the voltage applied to the expansion / contraction element 45 for movement, the voltage applied to the expansion / contraction element 45 ′ for the movement, and the voltage applied to the expansion / contraction element 31 ′ for the clamp are shown. For example, at time T1, a voltage of 100 V is applied to the clamping element 31, a voltage of 0 V is applied to the moving element 45, and a voltage of 100 V is applied to the moving element 45.
A voltage of V and a voltage of 0 V are applied to the clamping element 31 '. In this way, when the voltages from T1 to T6 are applied to the respective expansion / contraction elements based on the clock, the movable member moves by one step. Hereinafter, description will be made in order from T0, T1 to T6.

At T0, before starting the mechanism, no voltage is applied to each element.
100V is applied.

T1, a voltage of 100 V is applied to the clamp element 31
Is applied, the clamper 30 is operated, and the moving member 1 is clamped.

T2, a voltage of 0 to 100 V is applied to the moving element 45 and a voltage of 100 V to 0 V is applied to the moving element 45 '. The clamper 30 'is slightly displaced by a difference in frictional force between the clamp portion 33 clamped by the clamp element 31 and the unclamped clamp portion 33'. (Assuming that the mechanism is assembled in the positional relationship shown in FIG. 1, the clamper 30 'is slightly displaced in the lower right direction.) T3, a voltage of 100 V is applied to the clamper element 31', and the clamper 30 'is operated and moved. The member 1 is clamped.

T4, the voltage applied to the clamper element 31 is set to 0
V. The operation of the clamper 30 is released.

T5, the applied voltage of the moving element 45 is set to 100
The applied voltage of the moving element 45 'is changed from 0V to 100V from V to 0V. Due to the difference in frictional force between the clamp portion 33 'clamped by the clamping element 31' and the unclamped clamp portion 33, the clamper 30 'is slightly displaced while clamping the moving member 1. As a result, the moving member 1 moves minutely. (Assuming that the mechanism is assembled in the positional relationship shown in FIG. 1, the moving member slightly moves in the upper left direction.) T6, a voltage of 100 V is applied to the clamping element 31,
The moving member 1 is clamped by operating the clamper 30.
In this one cycle, the moving member moved about 5 μm. Subsequently, when T1 to T6 are repeated, the moving member can be further moved by about 5 μm. When a voltage is applied to each expansion element from right to left in FIG. 5 (from T6 to T1), the moving member can move about 5 μm in the opposite direction. Also, at the time of T2 (from T4), the telescopic elements 45, 4
By adjusting the voltage applied to 5 ', the distance moved in one step can be changed. Second Embodiment FIG. 6 is a drawing that clearly shows the features of the present invention.
6A is a side view, and FIG. 6B is a top view. In the figure, 1 is a moving member, 62 and 62 ′ are a pair of moving expansion and contraction elements adhered to both sides of the moving member 1, 63 and 6
3 'is a moving member 1 via moving telescopic elements 62 and 62'.
A clamping block 64 and 64 ′ are clamped telescopic elements for clamping the clamp blocks 63 and 63 ′, 65 and 65 ′ are clamp portions provided between the clamp telescopic element and the clamp block, Reference numeral 6 denotes a box-shaped frame, in which the elastic element for clamping and the frame are adhered and fixed. Reference numerals 7 and 7 'denote slide portions that slide inside the frame 6, and the slide portions 7 and 7' are provided on both sides of the clamping block. Here, a laminated piezoelectric element that expands and displaces by about 7 μm at an applied voltage of 100 V was used as the expansion / contraction element. Further, a Teflon resin is used for the slide portion. The telescopic element for clamping is
It is installed with a preload applied in the axial direction. That is,
In FIG. 6A, the sum of the lengths of the clamp block, the clamp extendable element, and the clamp portion is slightly longer than the inner size of the frame. As a result, the clamping block is pushed inside the frame even when no voltage is applied to the clamping telescopic element.

The operation of the coarse / fine movement mechanism will be described.

First, the coarse movement will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 7 shows the time sequence of the voltage applied to each expansion element. In order from the top of the same figure, a reference clock, a voltage applied to the clamp expansion / contraction element 64, a voltage applied to the movement expansion / contraction element 62, a voltage applied to the movement expansion / contraction element 62 ′, and a voltage applied to the clamp expansion / contraction element 64 ′ are shown. ing. For example, at time T1, 100 V is applied to the clamp element 64.
, A voltage of 0 V is applied to the moving elements 62 and 62 ′, and a voltage of 0 V is applied to the clamp element 64 ′. In this way, when the voltage from T1 to T6 is applied to each expansion element based on the clock, the moving member moves by one step. FIG. 8 shows the moving state of the moving member in order from time T1 to T6, and shows only the middle side of the frame. Hereinafter, description will be made in order from T1 to T6.

At T1, a voltage of 100 V is applied only to the clamp element 64 on the left side of FIG. The clamp portion in the pressed state is shown by blacking out.

T2, when a voltage of 50 V is applied to each of the driving elements 62 and 62 ', the difference between the frictional force between the block 63 pressed by the clamp element 64 and the block 63' not pressed against the inner wall of the frame is obtained. The moving member 1 and the block 63 'are moved rightward with the block 63 as a fixed part.

T3, 100 is applied to the right clamp element 64 '.
A voltage of V is applied to place the block 63 'in a clamped state.

At T4, the voltage applied to the left clamp element 64 is set to 0V. The block 63 is released from the clamp state.

At T5, the voltage applied to the moving elements 62 and 62 'is set to 0V. The moving member 1 and the block 63 move rightward with the clamped block 63 'as a fixed portion.

T6, 100V is applied to the right clamp element 64
And the block 63 is clamped.
In this one cycle, the moving member 1 moved rightward by about 5 μm. Subsequently, when T1 to T6 are repeated, the moving member can be moved rightward by about 5 μm. When a voltage is applied to each expansion element from right to left (T6 to T1) in FIG. 7, the moving member can move about 5 μm to the left. Further, at the time of T2 (from T4), the telescopic element for movement 6
By adjusting the voltage applied to 2, 62 ', the distance moved in one step can be changed. The moving element 62
Alternatively, coarse movement is possible by applying a voltage to one of the moving elements 62 '.

Next, the fine movement will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 9 shows the time sequence of the voltage applied to each expansion element in the state of T3 in FIG. As is clear from the figure, a voltage of 100 V is applied to the clamp elements 64 and 64 ', and the blocks 63 and 63' are pressed inside the frame. In addition, the moving elements 62 and 6
The waveform of the voltage applied to 2 ′ is a triangular wave. FIG.
0 indicates the order in which the moving members move. The description will be made in the following order.

AB, a voltage of 50V to 100V is applied to the left moving element 62, and a voltage of 50V to 0V is applied to the right moving element 62 '. The moving member moves rightward. The movement amount is about 2.5 μm.

BC, a voltage of 100V to 50V is applied to the moving element 62, and a voltage of 0V is applied to the moving element 62 '.
To 50V. The moving member returns to the same position as the first A.

CD, a voltage of 50V to 0V is applied to the moving element 62, and a voltage of 50V to 100V is applied to the moving element 62 '. The moving member moves about 2.5 μm to the left from the position of A (C).

D-E, the voltage from 0 V to 5 is applied to the moving element 62.
0 V, and a voltage of 100 V is applied to the moving element 62 ′.
To 50V. The moving member is the first A (C)
Return to the same position as. In this one cycle, the moving member can scan ± 2.5 μm from the first point. When a voltage is applied to the moving element from right to left (from E to A) in FIG.
μm can be scanned. Further, the amplitude of the scan can be changed by adjusting the wave height (voltage) of the triangular wave applied to the moving element. Then, if the voltage applied to the moving element is held at an arbitrary point between A and E in FIG. 9, fine movement to an arbitrary position can be performed. Only by controlling the voltage applied to the moving element, positional reproducibility on the order of nm can be obtained.

With the mechanism of this embodiment, coarse movement and fine movement can be accurately performed in one axis direction. This mechanism was arranged orthogonally, the probe and the sample were attached to the moving member, and the probe and the sample were scanned relative to each other, so that the mechanism could be used as a coarse and fine movement mechanism of the STM.

In the mechanism shown in FIG. 6, the expansion / contraction elements 64, 64 'for clamping are fixed to the inner side of the frame 6, but as shown in FIG. 11, the blocks 63, 63' for clamping are provided.
And the clamp portion may be inside the frame. In this case, the stroke at the time of coarse movement can be lengthened only by increasing the length of the frame in the moving direction. On the other hand, in the mechanism of FIG. 6, in order to increase the stroke, it is necessary to increase the length of the frame and the clamp block in the moving direction. Third Embodiment FIG. 12 is a side view showing a coarse movement fine movement mechanism according to a third embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, 1 is a moving member, 62 and 62 '
Is a pair of movable expansion and contraction elements adhered to both sides of the movement member 1, 63 and 63 'are movable expansion and contraction elements 62 and 62'.
A clamping block connected to the moving member 1 through
64a and 64b are clamping telescopic elements for clamping the clamping block 63, 64a 'and 64b' are clamping telescopic elements for clamping the clamping block 63 ',
Reference numerals 65 and 65 'denote clamp portions provided between the clamp telescopic element and the clamp block, 6 denotes a box-shaped frame, and the clamp telescopic element and the frame are adhered and fixed. Although not shown, as in FIG. 6B, slide portions that slide inside the frame 6 are provided on both sides of the clamping block. Here, a laminated piezoelectric element that expands and displaces by about 7 μm at an applied voltage of 100 V was used as the expansion / contraction element. Further, a Teflon resin is used for the slide portion. The elastic element for clamping is installed with a preload applied in the axial direction. That is, in FIG. 12, the sum of the lengths of the clamp block, the set of expansion / contraction elements for clamp, and the clamp portion is slightly longer than the inner size of the frame. Thus, the clamp block is held between the clamp telescopic elements even when no voltage is applied to the clamp telescopic elements.

The voltage applied to each expansion element at the time of coarse movement and fine movement is the same as that of the second embodiment. However, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 13, the clamping telescopic elements 64 b and 64 b ′ are extended, and the clamping telescopic elements 64 a and 64 b are extended.
By shrinking a ′, the moving member can be slightly moved downward. The voltage applied to each element at this time is, for example, 50 V at the neutral position (the position shown in FIG. 12),
In the position shown in FIG. 13, 0V is applied to the expandable elements 64a and 64a ', and 100V is applied to the expandable elements 64b and 64b'. The moving member is slightly moving about 2 μm below the neutral position. Also, 100 V is applied to the expansion and contraction elements 64a and 64a ', and
By applying a voltage of 0 V to b ', the moving member can be finely moved upward. In this way, the moving member can be coarsely moved and finely moved (scanned) in the horizontal direction, and finely moved (scanned) in the vertical direction.

In FIG. 12, a voltage of 50 V is applied to each of the right-side clamping telescopic elements 64a 'and 64b' to keep the block 63 'in the neutral position. Telescopic element 6
When 100 V is applied to 4b, the moving member can be rotated around the right block.

In the mechanism shown in FIG.
Elements 64a, 64a ', 64b, 64b'
The inside of the clamp was fixed as shown in FIG.
Adhesive on the block for
You may be on the side. In this case, the length in the moving direction of the frame
The stroke at the time of coarse movement can be lengthened only by lengthening the stroke. Fourth embodiment FIG. 15 is a side view showing a coarse / fine movement mechanism according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. In the figure, 1 is a moving member, 62 and 62 '
Is a pair of moving members bonded to both sides of the moving member 1 so as to face each other.
Telescopic elements 63 and 63 'are movable telescopic elements 62 and 62'.
A clamping block connected to the moving member 1 through
64a and 64b clamp the clamping block 63
Clamping elements 64a 'and 64b' are clamps
Telescopic element for clamping the block 63 '
65 and 65 'are a telescopic element for clamping and a block for clamping.
The clamp 6 provided between the clamps has the shape of a box.
Frame, the elastic element for clamping and the frame are bonded
Fixed. 8 guides the moving member in the left-right uniaxial direction
Linear guide, for example, a linear guide composed of a V-groove and a ball.
Id and the like can be used.

The voltage applied to each expansion element at the time of coarse movement and fine movement is the same as in the above-described embodiment. In the case of this embodiment,
The moving accuracy of the moving member in one axial direction is improved and the rigidity is increased. In this configuration, the movable portion cannot be rotated as in the third embodiment, but the rigidity of the movable member with respect to the frame is increased. Fifth Embodiment FIG. 16 is a drawing of a scanning tunnel microscope to which the XY coarse / fine movement mechanism of the present invention is applied. In FIG. 16, reference numeral 11 denotes a platinum-rhodium probe made by mechanical cutting, and 20 denotes a probe. A z-direction drive mechanism 30 for driving the probe 11 in the z-direction; a y-direction drive mechanism 30 for coarsely and finely moving the probe 11 in the y-direction;
The direction drive mechanism 30 is fixed to the frame 6 indicated by oblique lines. Reference numeral 40 denotes a sample, 41 denotes a sample holder for fixing the sample 40, 50 denotes an x-direction drive mechanism for finely and coarsely moving the sample 40 in the x direction, and the x-direction drive mechanism 50 is fixed to the frame 6 indicated by oblique lines. I have. 70 is a microcomputer that controls each circuit, etc., 71 is a voltage application circuit that applies a bias voltage between the probe 11 and the sample 40,
Reference numeral 72 denotes a current amplification circuit which converts a current flowing between the probe 11 and the sample 40 into a voltage and amplifies the voltage. The circuit 74 is a z-direction drive circuit for driving the probe 11 in the z-direction.

The fifth embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings.

The x-direction drive mechanism will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 17 shows an xz section passing through the probe, and FIG. 18 shows a yz section passing through the probe. In the figure, reference numeral 40 denotes a sample, 51 denotes an x-direction moving member to which the sample 40 is attached, 5
2 and 52 ′ are a pair of movable expansion / contraction elements adhered to both sides of the movable member 51, and 53 and 53 ′ are clamping blocks connected to the movable member 51 via the movable expansion / contraction elements 52 and 52 ′. , 54 and 54 'are clamping blocks 53
Telescopic elements for clamping 55 and 5 ', 55 and 5
Reference numeral 5 'denotes a clamp portion provided between the clamp expansion / contraction element and the clamp block, 6 denotes a box-shaped frame, and the clamp expansion / contraction element and the frame are connected via the y-direction guide bases 57 and 57'. It is adhesively fixed. Numeral 24 denotes a sphere, which enters a V-shaped groove which is lowered beside the moving member 51 and the x-direction guide bases 56 and 56 ', and restrains the movement of the moving member 51 in the x direction. Here, 100 is used as the expansion element.
A laminated piezoelectric element that elongates and displaces by about 7 μm with an applied voltage of V was used. Since the clamp telescopic element is installed with a preload applied in the axial direction, the clamp block is pushed inside the frame even when no voltage is applied to the clamp telescopic element.

FIG. 19 is a top view showing the x-direction coarse / fine movement mechanism, and the x-direction moving member 51 on which the sample 40 is mounted,
There are extendable elements 52 and 52 'for x-direction movement bonded to sandwich the moving member 51, and clamping blocks 53 and 53' bonded to the elements 52 and 52 'for movement. A dashed square on the upper surface of the clamping block indicates a portion where the clamp portion contacts when the moving member is at the neutral position. The frame 6 has an x-direction guide base 56
And 56 'are fixed, and the expansion elements 38 and 38' for y-direction clamp are adhered to the upper surface thereof.

The operation of the x-direction coarse / fine movement mechanism will be described.
First, in order to coarsely move the sample 40 in the x-direction, in FIG. 17, a worm-like drive is performed by using the expansion / contraction elements 54 and 54 ′ as clamping elements and the expansion / contraction elements 52 and / or 52 ′ as moving elements. Do. For example, when a voltage of 50 V is applied to each of the movable expansion / contraction elements 52 and 52 'and driven, coarse movement of about 5 μm can be performed in one step. x
In order to finely move the sample 40 in the direction,
A voltage is applied to 4 and 54 'to clamp the clamping block, and a contracting (expanding) voltage is applied to the moving expansion element 52, and an expanding (shrinking) voltage is applied to the moving expansion element 52'. The sample 40 on the x-direction moving member 51 can be finely moved in the x-direction. Further, in order to scan the sample in the x direction, a triangular wave or sine wave voltage may be applied to the above-described movable expansion / contraction element, and a scanning of about 1 μm can be performed by applying a voltage having a peak value of 20V.

Next, the y-direction drive mechanism will be described with reference to FIGS. In the figure, 11 is a probe, 20 is a z-direction drive mechanism for moving the probe 11 in the z direction, 35 is a y-direction moving member to which the z-direction drive mechanism 20 is attached, and 36 and 3
6 ′ is a pair of movable expansion / contraction elements adhered to both sides of the movable member 35, 37 and 37 ′ are clamping blocks connected to the movable member 35 via the movable expansion / contraction elements 36 and 36 ′, 38 And 38 'are clamping blocks 37 and 3
Telescopic elements for clamping 7 ', 39 and 39'
Is a clamp portion provided between the clamp telescopic element and the clamp block, 6 is a box-shaped frame,
X-direction guide base 56
And 56 'are adhered and fixed. Numeral 24 denotes a sphere, which enters a V-shaped groove machined beside the moving member 35 and the y-direction guide bases 57 and 57 'to restrain the movement of the moving member 31 in the y direction. Here, a laminated piezoelectric element that expands and displaces by about 7 μm at an applied voltage of 100 V was used as the expansion / contraction element. Since the clamp telescopic element is installed with a preload applied in the axial direction, the clamp block is pushed inside the frame even when no voltage is applied to the clamp telescopic element.

The operation of the y-direction coarse / fine movement mechanism will be described.
In order to coarsely move the probe 11 in the y direction, in FIG.
The telescopic element for movement 36 and / or 36 'is used as a moving element for driving in a worm type. For example, when a voltage of 50 V is applied to each of the movable expansion / contraction elements 36 and 36 'and driven, coarse movement of about 5 μm can be performed in one step. In order to finely move the probe 11 in the y direction,
A voltage is applied to 8 ′ to clamp the clamping block, and a contracting (expanding) voltage is applied to the moving elastic element 36, and an expanding (shrinking) voltage is applied to the moving elastic element 36 ′, thereby obtaining y. Probe 11 on direction moving member 35
Can be slightly moved in the y direction. Further, in order to scan the sample in the y direction, for example, a triangular wave or a sine wave voltage may be applied to the above-described movable expansion element, and scanning of about 1 μm can be performed by applying a voltage having a peak value of 20V.

The operation of this embodiment will be described. Tip 1
1 and the sample 40, and while applying a bias voltage of 0.3 V between the probe and the sample by the voltage applying circuit 71, the z-direction driving mechanism 20 is operated until the current detected by the current amplifying circuit 72 becomes 1 nA. Drive to bring the probe close to the sample. Here, the triangular wave peak value 20 of the main scanning is applied to the x-direction driving mechanism 50.
A voltage of V is applied, and a voltage of a triangular wave peak value of 20 V in the sub-scanning direction is applied to the y-direction driving mechanism 30 to perform scanning. Thus, the probe 11 and the sample 40 can be two-dimensionally scanned over an area of 1 μm square, and an SMT image can be obtained by performing the STM operation. When the stroke of the z-direction drive mechanism is larger than the play in the z-direction caused by the clearance between the V-shaped groove guiding the moving members of the x-direction drive mechanism and the y-direction drive mechanism and the sphere portion, the tunnel region is formed. Rough motion can be performed while servo is applied with the probe close to the probe.

With this apparatus, an atomic image of graphite can be obtained. Sixth Embodiment FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an example in which a sixth embodiment of the present invention is applied to an information recording / reproducing apparatus. In the figure, 10 is a plurality of probe electrodes made of tungsten, 20 is a probe electrode 1
0 is a z-direction drive mechanism that drives 0 in the z direction, 30 is a y-direction drive mechanism that finely and coarsely moves the probe electrode 10 in the y direction,
The y-direction drive mechanism 30 is fixed to the frame 6 shown by oblique lines. 80 is a smooth substrate obtained by cleaving mica, 81 is a base electrode obtained by epitaxially growing Au on the substrate 80, and 82 is squarylium-bis-6-octylazulene (hereinafter referred to as S) having an electric memory effect.
OAZ) is a recording layer obtained by accumulating eight layers by the LB method (accumulation method). The recording medium 83 is composed of the substrate 80, the base electrode 8,
1, a recording layer 82. 50 is a recording medium 8
An x-direction drive mechanism 50 for coarsely moving and fine-moving 3 in the x-direction, and an x-direction drive mechanism 50 are fixed to a frame 6 indicated by oblique lines. The x-direction drive mechanism and the y-direction drive mechanism have the same configuration as in the above-described embodiment, and the coarse drive and the fine drive are performed in the same manner. Reference numeral 90 denotes an interface for connection to a host device of the recording / reproducing apparatus, 99 denotes a control circuit for centrally controlling the mutual operation between the blocks in the recording / reproducing apparatus, and 91 denotes a control circuit for writing / reading information (data)
A writing / reading circuit for writing / reading in accordance with an instruction from the device; 92, a voltage application circuit for applying a pulsed voltage between the probe electrode 10 and the recording medium 83 to write / read data; and 93, a probe A current amplifying circuit 94 amplifies a current flowing between the electrode 10 and the recording medium 83. A probe 94 is provided based on signals from the current amplifying circuit 93 and the position detecting circuit 98 in accordance with an instruction from the control circuit 99 or the like.
And a positioning circuit for determining the position of the recording medium 83, a servo circuit 95 for servoing the relative position of the probe electrode 10 and the recording medium 83 based on the servo signal from the positioning circuit 94, and a probe electrode 96 in accordance with the signal of the servo circuit 95. 1
A z-direction drive circuit for driving the z-direction drive mechanism 20 of 0, 9
Reference numeral 7 denotes an xy-direction drive circuit that drives the y-direction drive mechanism 30 and the x-direction drive mechanism 50 in accordance with a signal from the servo circuit 95.

FIG. 21 shows the probe electrode in the z direction (recording medium).
FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a mechanism for driving in a direction perpendicular to the surface. 10
Is a probe electrode, 26 is a bimorph beam, and 27 is a wiring area
It is. The cross-sectional configuration of the bimorph beam 26 is, for example, an upper electrode
(Au) / insulating film (Si_Three N _Four ) / Piezoelectric layer (ZnO) /
Insulating film (Si_Three N_Four ) / Medium electric bending (Au) / Insulating film (Si
_Three N_Four ) / Piezoelectric layer (ZnO) / insulating film (Si_Three N_Four ) /
The lower electrode (Au) has dimensions of 600 μm × 12
One having a thickness of about 0 μm and a thickness of about 10 μm was used. Up
Applying voltage to the middle and lower electrodes to drive them as bimorphs
Can move the probe electrode 10, and the applied voltage ±
At 4 V, a displacement of about 4 μm is obtained. In addition,
The fabrication of the morph beam 26 and the probe electrode 10 is performed by a micro
Called mechanics or micromachining
This was performed by a known method.

→ [Reference: K. E. FIG. Peterse
n, Proc. IEEE, 70 , 420 (1982)] The signal line from the tungsten probe electrode 10 passes over the bimorph beam 26 to the switching circuit on the wiring region 27, and is connected to the voltage application circuit and the current amplification circuit. A wiring for guiding a control signal for each bimorph beam 26 from the z-direction drive circuit is also formed on the wiring region 27.

The operation of this embodiment will be described.

First, since the probe electrode 10 is separated to avoid contact or collision with the recording medium 83, the two are brought closer by the Z-direction drive mechanism 20. The procedure is as follows. A reading voltage of 0.1 V is applied between the probe electrode 10 and the base electrode 81 of the recording medium by the voltage application circuit 92 to drive the z-direction drive mechanism 20 to detect the current detected by the current amplification circuit 93. This is performed by bringing the probe electrode 10 closer to 10 pA. Here, the probe is held by holding the z-direction drive mechanism 20, scanning the probe electrode 10 in the y-direction using the y-direction drive mechanism 30, and scanning the recording medium 83 in the x-direction using the x-direction drive mechanism 50. The electrode 10 and the recording medium 83 can be relatively two-dimensionally scanned. When the read information was viewed in this state, no information was found. More specifically, the output value of the current amplifying circuit 93 obtained while scanning the probe electrode and the recording medium is converted to a current flowing between the probe electrode 10 and the base electrode 81 of the recording medium 83 by 10
The value was pA.

For recording, the recording medium 83 and the probe electrode 10 were used.
Is applied to the writing position on the recording area of the recording medium 83 while applying a pulse-like voltage (pulse height 5 V, pulse width 50 ns).
This pulse voltage is applied to the recording layer 8 having the electric memory effect.
2 is a voltage sufficient to change from the OFF (high resistance) state to the ON (low resistance) state. The write timing and the like depend on the control signal of the control circuit 99.

For reproduction, a voltage of 0.1 V is applied between the probe electrode 10 and the base electrode 81 of the recording medium by the voltage application circuit 92 while the probe electrode 10 and the recording medium 8 are being read.
3 is two-dimensionally scanned, and a current change in a recording area of the recording medium 83 is observed by a current amplification circuit 93. More specifically, the output value of the current amplification circuit 93 obtained while scanning the probe electrode and the recording medium is converted into a current flowing between the probe electrode 10 and the base electrode 81 of the recording medium 83, and the current at the position of the recording bit is The value was 100 nA or more at which the amplifier circuit 93 was saturated, and the value at other places was 10 pA. This current change becomes read information by the write / read circuit 91 and is transmitted to the host device through the interface 90. The read timing and the like depend on the control signal of the control circuit 99.

The dimensions of the recording bit were 20 nm in diameter. Although the above description was made with one probe electrode,
Signals from a plurality of probe electrodes can be sent to the interface by a switching circuit (not shown) for switching signals from the probe electrodes.

When the recording area is changed, fine movement is performed when the stroke can be covered by the fine movement strokes of the x-direction drive mechanism and y-direction drive mechanism, and coarse movement drive is performed when the stroke is insufficient.

[0056]

As described above, according to the present invention,
Since the clamping means is provided in the linear guide portion of the moving member, the coarse movement mechanism can be reduced in size and simplified. Further, by providing the clamp means in the concave portion of the movable member, the thickness can be reduced.

Further, according to the present invention, the same element is used as the expansion and contraction element during coarse movement and the expansion and contraction element during fine movement.
The coarse and fine movement mechanism can be reduced in size and simplified.

Further, the same X-direction driving mechanism and the same Y-direction driving mechanism can be used, and the number of parts can be reduced. Also, a guide mechanism is provided.
With this, the moving accuracy of the moving member in one axis direction is improved, and the rigidity is high.
Is being measured.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing components of a coarse movement mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the coarse movement mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention viewed from a moving direction.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a clamper of the coarse movement mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a view for explaining a relationship between a moving member and a clamper of the coarse movement mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a voltage application procedure during coarse movement of the coarse movement mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a side view and a top view of a coarse and fine movement mechanism according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a voltage application procedure during coarse movement of the coarse movement fine movement mechanism according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a side view showing the movement at the time of coarse movement of the coarse movement fine movement mechanism according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a voltage application procedure diagram during scanning of the coarse movement fine movement mechanism according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a side view showing the movement at the time of scanning of the coarse movement fine movement mechanism according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a side view of a coarse and fine movement mechanism of the present invention in which the second embodiment of the present invention is partially improved.

FIG. 12 is a side view of a coarse and fine movement mechanism according to a third embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a side view showing the movement at the time of fine movement of the coarse movement fine movement mechanism according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a side view of a coarse and fine movement mechanism in which the third embodiment of the present invention is partially improved.

FIG. 15 is a side view of a coarse and fine movement mechanism according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a configuration diagram of a scanning tunnel microscope to which a coarse and fine movement mechanism according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 17 is a side view of an XY coarse movement fine movement mechanism according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention (xz plane passing through a probe).

FIG. 18 is a side view of an XY coarse movement fine movement mechanism according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention (xz plane passing through a probe).

FIG. 19 is a top view of an XY coarse movement fine movement mechanism according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 20 is a configuration diagram of a recording / reproducing apparatus to which a coarse / fine movement mechanism according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 21 is a perspective view of a z-direction drive mechanism according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Moving member 2 Linear guide part 3,30,30 'Clamp 31,31' Clamping expansion element 33,33 'Clamping part 4 Base 41,41' Clamp mounting part 43 Movable part 45,45 'Moving expansion element 62 , 62 'Moving telescopic element 63, 63' Clamping block 64, 64 ', 64a, 64a', 64b, 64b '
Clamping expansion / contraction element 65, 65 'Clamp section 6 Frame 7, 7' Slide section 8 Linear guide section 10 Probe electrode 11 Probe 20 Z-direction drive mechanism 30 Y-direction drive mechanism 40 Sample 50 x-direction drive mechanism 70 Microcomputer 83 Recording Medium 90 interface

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-1-97538 (JP, A) JP-A-63-7248 (JP, A) JP-A-1-109047 (JP, A) JP-A-63-1988 238416 (JP, A) Japanese Utility Model 1-106136 (JP, U) Japanese Utility Model 5-55118 (JP, U) (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G12B 5/00 G01B 21 / 00 B23Q 5/28

Claims (8)

(57) [Claims] 1. A moving member movable in one direction with respect to a base by a linear guide mechanism, a movable portion movable in the moving direction of the moving member, and provided to face the moving direction with the movable portion interposed therebetween. And a plurality of clamping means provided on the base and the movable part, respectively, for clamping the moving member. The operation of the plurality of clamping means causes the expansion and contraction of the moving elastic element. A coarse movement mechanism for converting the displacement of the movable portion based on the movement into the displacement of the moving member. 2. The coarse movement mechanism according to claim 1, wherein said movable portion is integrally connected to said base via a plurality of elastic hinges. 3. A coarse movement mechanism according to claim 1, wherein said clamping means comprises a telescopic element for clamping. 4. The coarse movement mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the clamping means includes a clamping telescopic element and a lever means for enlarging a displacement generated at both ends of the clamping telescopic element. 5. The coarse telescopic device according to claim 1, wherein the movable telescopic element and the clamp telescopic element are formed of an electrostrictive element, and the electrostrictive element is provided with a preload applied thereto. Dynamic mechanism. 6. The moving member according to claim 1, wherein a concave portion is provided in the moving member, and the clamping means is housed in the concave portion, and the moving member is clamped so as to expand from inside.
The coarse movement mechanism according to 2, 3, 4 or 5. 7. A first and a second moving member which are respectively guided in two orthogonal directions and are movably opposed to each other, and
A pair of first movable expansion / contraction elements provided to face each other with the movable member therebetween, first clamping means for clamping the opposite side of the movable expansion / contraction element from the movable member side, and sandwiching the second movable member. A coarse and fine movement mechanism comprising: a pair of second movable expansion / contraction elements provided so as to face each other; and second clamp means for clamping the opposite side of the movable expansion / contraction element from the movable member side. 8. A scanning probe microscope having the coarse and fine movement mechanism according to claim 7 .