Lateral manipulation of atomic size defects on theCaF2(111) surface.

Atomic scale manipulation on insulating surfaces is one of the great challenges ofnon-contact atomic force microscopy. Here we demonstrate lateral manipulation ofdefects occupying single ionic sites on a calcium fluoride (111)-surface. Defectsstem from the interaction of the residual gas with the surface. The process ofsurface degradation is briefly discussed. Manipulation is performed over a widerange of path lengths ranging from tens of nanometres down to a few latticeconstants. We introduce a simple manipulation protocol based on line-by-linescanning of a surface region containing defects to be manipulated, and recordtip–surface distance and cantilever resonance frequency detuning as a function ofthe manipulation pathway in real time. We suggest a hopping model to describemanipulation where the tip–defect interaction is governed by repulsive forces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]