Figure 2.

Geometry for normal and lateral atomic force microscopy (AFM) force measurements. (a) Side view of cantilever. A normal force applied to an AFM cantilever results in a normal deflection of the cantilever (treated like a flexible beam) by a distance Δd_n, and a bend angle θ_n (measured tangentially at the end of the cantilever). (b) Frontal view of cantilever. A lateral force applied to an AFM cantilever results in a lateral deflection of the cantilever by a distance Δd_l, and a bend angle θ_l. This is the situation when pulling on a fiber. (c) Schematic diagram of an AFM probe showing the length (L), width (w) and thickness (t) of the cantilever and the height (h) of the AFM tip.