43247-25A-RFP - ATOMIC FORCE MICROSCOPY (AFM)TO RAPIDLY MEASURE AND CHARACTERIZE COMPLEX POLYMER

PART 1: INTRODUCTION

1. 1. - Background Information

1. 2. - Statement of Requirements
      1. The Unversity of Ottawa is pleased to invite qualified proponents to submit a proposal for  An Atomic Force Microscope (AFM). The AFM is an essential tool required to characterize thin films and surfaces at the nanoscale. The information provided by the AFM can include surface chemistry, interface quality, mechanical properties, optoelectronic behaviour and more. These properties are vital for understanding how molecular design of polymers and nanomaterials impacts their performance in applications including solar cells, transistors, sensors, and organic light emitting diodes, among others. The AFM will instrumental in developing a comprehensive understanding of next-generation materials. For the Sustainable Soft Materials and Regulatory Transition project we require the ability to perform non-destructive, simultaneous, and quantitative characterization of the topography and mechanical properties of complex polymer blends. Our samples will have features on the nm scale and will need to be differentiated based on quantitative mechanical properties including adhesion, Young’s modulus, and deformation. Furthermore, some of the samples we are planning to study will have evolving morphologies when subjected to different temperatures and will require analysis to be executed quickly (on the order of under 5 min) to be able to monitor these evolving surfaces.

1. 1. 2. The AFM in question will enable rapid, high throughput analysis of standard film characteristics including surface roughness, topography, and mechanical properties for a diverse set of complex polymer blends and samples that will include organic semiconductors, carbon nanotubes, biodegradable polymers, and nanoparticles. A key aspect of this project will be rapid, ideally real-time, in-situ analysis of samples as they are exposed to changes in environmental conditions designed to assess stability and efficacy in sensor applications.

1. 1. 3. The AFM should  must be a fully enclosed, vibration dampened and acoustically isolated unit that willmust enable rapid, non-destructive, and automated surface analysis and imaging of diverse thin film samples deposited on substrates as large as 200 mm in diameter. The instrument will be capable of operating over a range of imaging windows (up to 30 µm at higher speeds or up to 80 µm at lower speeds) at or approaching atomic resolution (sub nm in the Z-axis and single nm in XY-axis for ideal samples eg. mica). This topographical analysis should be complemented by the ability to simultaneously measure mechanical properties including adhesion, Young’s modulus, and deformation (without changing heads/tips). The instrument should have the ability to heat samples between -30 and 250 °C and should also be capable of fast scanning at speeds in the range of 5-20 Hz in typical operation without loss of image quality while preserving the ability to simultaneously capture topographical and mechanical properties.

1. 1. 4. The instrument will be initially situated in a small lab at the University of Ottawa by itself on the second floor facing an exterior wall and will eventually be relocated to a larger standard lab on the fifth floor in a multi-instrument, high traffic facility.

1. 1. 5. Specifications listed in Appendix A – Technical Specifications Compliance Form of this RFP are the mandatory minimum requirements for the Atomic Force Microscopy to rapidly measure and characterize complex polymer blends and nanomaterials.