Piezoelectric displacement mapping of compliant surfaces by constant-excitation frequency-modulation piezoresponse force microscopy

A simple experimental method for piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM) measurements for reliable evaluation of piezoelectric surface displacements even on compliant surfaces is proposed based on atomic force microscopy (AFM) operated in frequency-modulation (FM) dynamic mode with constant excitation (CE), by using non-contact mode cantilevers. Surface displacement by piezoelectric effect after application of an electric potential to the conductive AFM probe translates into a likewise variation of the probe oscillation amplitude, while the related electrostatic forces mainly affect the oscillator resonant frequency, and cantilever bending is limited due to their high stiffness. Our non-contact CE-FM-PFM method is shown to reduce electrostatic force contributions as compared to contact-PFM modes. Converse piezoelectric effect mapping is demonstrated on poly(vinylidenefluoride) nanofibers obtained by electrospinning.