Resonant Response of Rectangular AFM Cantilever in Liquid

Dynamic characteristics of atomic force microscopy (AFM) cantilevers can be influenced by their working media. We perform an experimental study on the resonant responses of rectangular AFM cantilevers with different sizes immersed in various viscous fluids. The measured resonance frequencies in liquids are used to validate several theoretical models. Comparison shows the analytical model proposed by Sader J. Appl. Phys. 84 (1998) 64 can give the best agreement with the experimental results with the maximum relative error nearly 16% for all the cantilevers in different liquids. The ratio between the resonant frequencies in air and water is almost independent of the cantilever length, which is consistent with the theoretical analyses.