A sensing probe may be formed of a diamond material comprising one or more spin defects that are configured to emit fluorescent light and are located no more than 50 nm from a sensing surface of the sensing probe. The sensing probe may include an optical outcoupling structure formed by the diamond material and configured to optically guide the fluorescent light toward an output end of the optical outcoupling structure. An optical detector may detect the fluorescent light that is emitted from the spin defects and that exits through the output end of the optical outcoupling structure after being optically guided therethrough. A mounting system may hold the sensing probe and control a distance between the sensing surface of the sensing probe and a surface of a sample while permitting relative motion between the sensing surface and the sample surface.

The present invention provides a cantilever for a scanning type probe microscope, the cantilever including a support portion, a lever portion extending from the support portion, a protrusion portion formed on a free end side of the lever portion, an apex angle of the protrusion portion being an acute angle, and a probe in which a fine wire formed at a distal end of the protrusion portion is coated with a functional film, and a major axis/minor axis ratio of a cross-sectional shape of the probe is smaller than a major axis/minor axis ratio of a cross-sectional shape of the fine wire.

The present invention provides a cantilever for a scanning type probe microscope, the cantilever including a support portion, a lever portion extending from the support portion, a protrusion portion formed on a free end side of the lever portion, an apex angle of the protrusion portion being an acute angle, and a probe in which a fine wire formed at a distal end of the protrusion portion is coated with a functional film, and a major axis/minor axis ratio of a cross-sectional shape of the probe is smaller than a major axis/minor axis ratio of a cross-sectional shape of the fine wire.

A sensing probe may be formed of a diamond material comprising one or more spin defects that are configured to emit fluorescent light and are located no more than 50 nm from a sensing surface of the sensing probe. The sensing probe may include an optical outcoupling structure formed by the diamond material and configured to optically guide the fluorescent light toward an output end of the optical outcoupling structure. An optical detector may detect the fluorescent light that is emitted from the spin defects and that exits through the output end of the optical outcoupling structure after being optically guided therethrough. A mounting system may hold the sensing probe and control a distance between the sensing surface of the sensing probe and a surface of a sample while permitting relative motion between the sensing surface and the sample surface.

A sensing probe may be formed of a diamond material comprising one or more spin defects that are configured to emit fluorescent light and are located no more than 50 nm from a sensing surface of the sensing probe. The sensing probe may include an optical outcoupling structure formed by the diamond material and configured to optically guide the fluorescent light toward an output end of the optical outcoupling structure. An optical detector may detect the fluorescent light that is emitted from the spin defects and that exits through the output end of the optical outcoupling structure after being optically guided therethrough. A mounting system may hold the sensing probe and control a distance between the sensing surface of the sensing probe and a surface of a sample while permitting relative motion between the sensing surface and the sample surface.

A metrology device for determining metrological characteristics of a sample is described that includes a probe, a scanning mechanism, a radiation source, an optical sensor and a signal processor. In operation the scanning mechanism displaces the probe relative to the sample, along a surface of the sample. The probe has a diamond tip with one or more nitrogen-vacancy centers and is irradiated by the radiation source with photon radiation to excite the diamond tip to emit fluorescent light. The optical sensor provides a sense signal indicative of an intensity of the emitted fluorescent light and the signal processor processes the sense signal to compute at least one characteristic of a feature present in the sample.

A metrology device for determining metrological characteristics of a sample is described that includes a probe, a scanning mechanism, a radiation source, an optical sensor and a signal processor. In operation the scanning mechanism displaces the probe relative to the sample, along a surface of the sample. The probe has a diamond tip with one or more nitrogen-vacancy centers and is irradiated by the radiation source with photon radiation to excite the diamond tip to emit fluorescent light. The optical sensor provides a sense signal indicative of an intensity of the emitted fluorescent light and the signal processor processes the sense signal to compute at least one characteristic of a feature present in the sample.

The resonance structure is that two rows of ground via holes are placed symmetrically along two sides of the CB-CPW central conductor; each row of the via holes are equally spaced; every via hole connects a top shield plane layer, a first middle layer and a bottom shield plane layer of the magnetic probe; every via hole is placed out of a rectangle gap at the bottom of the magnetic probe; the via holes form a fence. The construction method: 1. constructing a simulation model formed by the magnetic probe and a 50 microstrip in a CST microwave studio; 2. simulation setting; 3. placing via holes along two sides of the central conductor; 4. connecting a 50 matching load to the second end of the microstrip and defining the first end as microstrip port1; defining the end on which mount a SMA connector as probe port2; simulating S21.

The resonance structure is that two rows of ground via holes are placed symmetrically along two sides of the CB-CPW central conductor; each row of the via holes are equally spaced; every via hole connects a top shield plane layer, a first middle layer and a bottom shield plane layer of the magnetic probe; every via hole is placed out of a rectangle gap at the bottom of the magnetic probe; the via holes form a fence. The construction method: 1. constructing a simulation model formed by the magnetic probe and a 50 microstrip in a CST microwave studio; 2. simulation setting; 3. placing via holes along two sides of the central conductor; 4. connecting a 50 matching load to the second end of the microstrip and defining the first end as microstrip port1; defining the end on which mount a SMA connector as probe port2; simulating S21.

A magnetoresistive stack includes a reference layer including a magnetic layer, an antiferromagnetic layer in exchange coupling with the magnetic layer, a magnetic layer substantially of the same magnetisation as the magnetic layer, a spacer layer between the magnetic layers with a thickness for enabling an antiferromagnetic coupling between the magnetic layers of a first coupling intensity, a free layer having a coercivity of less than 10 microTesla, the free layer including a magnetic layer, an antiferromagnetic layer in exchange coupling with the magnetic layer, a magnetic layer substantially of the same magnetisation as the magnetic layer, a spacer layer between the magnetic layers with a thickness for enabling an antiferromagnetic coupling between the magnetic layers of a second coupling intensity lower than the first coupling intensity, a third spacer layer separating the reference and free layers.