Patent ID: 7196328

Claim:
In a nanomachining system having a scanning probe suitable for use in a scanning probe microscope, a method of calibrating the scanning probe for nanomachining operations comprising: (a) applying an excitation energy to activate the scanning probe; (b) adjusting a level of the excitation energy incrementally to a threshold energy level below which there is no significant detection of a surface when it is scanned and above which there is significant detection of the surface when it is scanned; (c) setting the excitation energy to a level above the threshold energy level; (d) performing a scan sequence on a test surface along a scan vector, the scan sequence comprising a predetermined number of scans, N; (e) determining a measure indicative of the degree of scan induced cutting of the test surface along the scan vector; (f) increasing the excitation energy level; repeating steps (d) through (f) until a tolerable setting of the excitation energy is attained wherein the determined measure exceeds a predetermined measure; and storing the tolerable setting in a data store having stored therein a plurality of previously determined tolerable settings wherein during a subsequent nanomachining operation the scanning probe is activated based on a selected tolerable setting obtained from the data store.