Leaders join forces in atomic force microscopy Nanosurf

Nanosurf, a leading provider of atomic force microscopes (AFM) and scanning tunneling microscopes (STM), and Zurich Instruments, technology leader for lock-in amplifiers and phase-locked loops (PLL), today announced a strategic technology partnership. The two companies have agreed to cooperate in the development of high-frequency, high-performance scanning probe microscopy (SPM) solutions, to provide mutual communication interfaces between their equipment, to share application know-how, and to perform joint promotion activities in key markets. In particular, Nanosurf will propose the Zurich Instruments high-performance 50 MHz PLL as upgrade path to its successful easyPLL and easyPLL plus platform, thereby granting Zurich Instruments immediate access to its large community of PLL users.

Nanosurf will continue to develop SPM controllers for its products, which will feature compatibility to Zurich Instruments PLLs for a seamless integration. Customers of Nanosurf will profit from known product performance and reliability, and — additionally — from the performance boost provided by Zurich Instruments technology.

This cooperation agreement matches 2 companies with complementary capabilities in a joint strategy to provide value-added solutions to customers. "This new partnership will allow us, more than ever before, to fully focus our resources on the development and production of easy-to-use and high-performance scanning probe microscopes, while relying on the world-class PLL and lock-in solutions from Zurich Instruments — for example in higher-harmonics applications", comments Urs Matter, CEO of Nanosurf. Sadik Hafizovic, CEO of Zurich Instruments, adds: "This cooperation with Nanosurf perfectly fits into our company strategy to deliver innovative high-end measurement instruments to challenging markets such as scanning probe microscopy".

Nanosurf is a leading provider of user-friendly atomic force microscopes and scanning tunneling microscopes. Nanosurf’s products and services are trusted by professionals worldwide to help them measure, analyze, and present 3D surface information.

Technology leader Zurich Instruments (ZI) designs and manufactures high performance dynamic signal analysis instruments for advanced scientific research and high-end industrial applications. ZI products include lock-in amplifiers, phase-locked loops, instruments for electrical impedance spectroscopy, and application-specific pre-amplifiers.