For some AFM applications, such asnanoindentation or nanolithography a very hard and durable AFM tip is required. Someconductive AFM applications even require an extremely hard and at the same time conductive AFM tip. In such cases, AFM probes withmetal coatings are not the right choice and the use of a diamond or even conductive diamond coated AFM probe is advised.Diamond is the hardest material on earth. Like graphite, it consists of carbon but is considerably harder. The difference to graphite is the amount of (strong) sp3 atom-to-atom bindings instead of (weaker) sp2 bindings. In nature, the transition of carbon or graphite to diamond takes place under high pressure and high temperatures in the interior of the earth. To manufacture a diamond coated AFM probe, a carbon containing gas is being lead at high temperatures over a silicon AFM probe. If the process conditions are chosen the right way, the carbon will crystallize on the silicon surface and form a diamond layer. Usually diamond is growing in small (nano) crystallites. To form a close (and conductive) diamond layer, normally a diamond thickness of some 100 nm is required. This will result in a larger overall tip radius in the range of about some 100 nm for all diamond coated AFM probes. This is usually called the macroscopic tip radius. However, very often a single crystallite protrudes at the very end of the tip and thereby forms a small \"extra-tip\" with a radius in the 10 nm regime.Diamond coated tip NANOSENSORS Diamond coated PointProbe tip.Nano-crystallites Diamond nano-crystallites are covering the very end of the silicon tip apex.Raman spectrum Raman spectrum of the diamond coating.Unfortunately, pure diamond is not conductive. By adding other atoms with one electron less or more than carbon (so-called dopants) to the carbon gas, those atoms will be incorporated in the diamond crystallites during the growth process, thus enabling an electronic current flow. But unfortunately, the higher the number of dopants is, the lower the number of strong diamond sp3-bindings will be. As a result of the doping atom incorporation the diamond is getting softer. Here, a trade-off between hardness and conductivity has to be found.The conductivity of doped diamond is depending on the dopant atom concentration roughly ten to hundred times less than for metals. But out of all conductive AFM probes, diamond the hardest material on earth - is showing by far the smallest amount of wear. best of the best CDT-FMR Diamond Coated, Conductive Force Modulation AFM Probe Coating: Diamond,Conductive DiamondTip Shape: Standard AFM Cantilever: F 105 kHz C 6.2 N/m L 225 µm the industry standard NW-CDT-FMR Diamond Coated, Conductive Force Modulation AFM Probe Coating: Diamond,Conductive DiamondTip Shape: Standard AFM Cantilever: F 105 kHz C 6.2 N/m L 225 µm CDT-CONTR Diamond Coated, Conductive Contact Mode AFM Probe Coating: Diamond,Conductive DiamondTip Shape: Standard AFM Cantilever: F 20 kHz C 0.5 N/m L 450 µm best bang for your buck All-In-One-DD Diamond Coated, Conductive AFM Probe with 4 Different Cantilevers Coating: Conductive DiamondTip Shape: Rotated AFM Cantilevers: 4 F 19 kHz C 0.5 N/m L 500 µm F 110 kHz C 6.5 N/m L 210 µm F 200 kHz C 18 N/m L 150 µm F 450 kHz C 100 N/m L 100 µm CDT-NCHR Diamond Coated, Conductive Tapping Mode AFM Probe Coating: Diamond,Conductive DiamondTip Shape: Standard AFM Cantilever: F 400 kHz C 80 N/m L 125 µm CDT-NCLR Diamond Coated, Conductive Tapping Mode AFM Probe with Long AFM Cantilever Coating: Diamond,Conductive DiamondTip Shape: Standard AFM Cantilever: F 210 kHz C 72 N/m L 225 µm NW-CDT-NCHR Diamond Coated, Conductive Tapping Mode AFM Probe Coating: Diamond,Conductive DiamondTip Shape: Standard AFM Cantilever: F 400 kHz C 80 N/m L 125 µm NW-CDT-NCLR Diamond Coated, Conductive Tapping Mode AFM Probe with Long Cantilever Coating: Diamond,Conductive DiamondTip Shape: Standard AFM Cantilever: F 210 kHz C 72 N/m L 225 µm top value HQ:DMD-XSC11 AFM Probe with 4 Different Diamond Coated, Conductive Cantilevers for Various Applications Coating: Conductive DiamondTip Shape: Rotated AFM Cantilevers: 4 F 18 kHz C 0.5 N/m L 500 µm F 110 kHz C 6.5 N/m L 210 µm F 210 kHz C 18 N/m L 150 µm F 450 kHz C 95 N/m L 100 µm