Preparation and characterisation of a new amorphous tip coating for application in magnetic force microscopy

Using sputter deposition, we have coated standard silicon pyramidal force microscopy tips with an amorphous ferromagnetic film. The film composition is close to that of the commercial METGLAS ® 2605SC amorphous ribbon. Using a NIST magnetic imaging reference sample, and a Digital Instruments Dimension 3000 microscope platform, we demonstrate the good spatial resolution of the coated tip, and that it behaves in a manner consistent with a magnetic moment intermediate between currently available commercial tips and those possessing a low coercivity. Using Lorentz electron tomography techniques, the stray field pattern of the tip in the remanent state was shown to be consistent with a magnetic moment aligned along the tip axis.