Patent ID: 7240428

Claim:
A method of producing probes for atomic force microscopy, comprising: producing, on a surface of one side of a semiconductor substrate, one or more moulds for the production of one or more probe tips; producing, on the one side, one or more probe configurations, wherein each configuration comprises a contact region for attachment of a holder, and at least one set of a probe tip and a cantilever wherein at least a portion of the contact region is separate from the probe tip and the cantilever; attaching one or more holders to the contact region(s), wherein the surface area of each contact region is smaller in size than the surface area of the holder which is to be attached to the contact region; and releasing the structure comprising the probe configuration and the holder from the substrate by under-etching the probe configuration from the one side of the substrate on which the probe configuration is produced, wherein under-etching is performed after attaching the holder.