Agreement furthers surface analysis development

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Mar 25, 2008

The MountainsMap installed base at ICMAB will be expanded and ICMAB will provide Digital Surf with technical feedback pertinent to the development of future generations of MountainsMap software.

ICMAB - CSIC and Digital Surf have signed a co-operation agreement.

The agreement falls within the framework of Digital Surf's Mount Shasta technical co-operation programme with international laboratories engaged in scientific research and already using Digital Surf's MountainsMap surface analysis software.

The MountainsMap installed base at ICMAB will be expanded and ICMAB will provide Digital Surf with technical feedback pertinent to the development of future generations of MountainsMap software.

ICMAB carries out advanced materials research in numerous fields.

The institute is engaged in projects and research contracts for the synthesis, preparation, crystallisation and characterisation of functional high-performance materials, including nanomaterials and has constructed several device prototypes.

Current projects include the self-assembly of nanostructures for superconducting wires using chemical solution deposition (CSD), magnetic systems for spintronics, self-assembled supramolecular wires for molecular electronics and many other applications, including renewable energies and biomaterials.

Advanced materials research and surface engineering require surface measurement equipment and surface visualisation and analysis software.

ICMAB uses several scanning probe microscopes (SPMs) from Agilent Technologies and NanoTec Electronica and MountainsMap surface analysis software from Digital Surf.

Software based on Digital Surf's Mountains technology, including MountainsMap and custom software integrated by surface metrology instrument manufacturers worldwide, is a reference in 2D/3D/4D surface analysis.

The software is continuously updated to include the latest industry standards and methods and to incorporate innovations from Digital Surf's specialists in surface metrology.

MountainsMap Version 5 includes an analysis workflow that provides full metrological traceablity and allows the user to add a new analysis step, fine tune a step or delete a step at any time.

Everything is recalculated automatically.

A finished document can be used as a template for analysing other measurement data sets.

Minidocs (pre-defined sequences of analysis steps or macros) can also be created for use in an analysis document to save time.

MountainsMap Version 5 also offers the ability to simulate flights over surfaces and generate .avi files for integration into presentations and the 4D visualisation and statistical analysis of series of surfaces as they evolve in time.

MountainsMap inputs and processes multilayer SPM files, including topography, phase, current, deflection and other layers.

Reports are generated using a multilanguage desktop publishing user interface.

A range of filters can be applied to enhance image quality and to separate different frequencies.

A comprehensive set of studies include dimensional control, the analysis of grains, particles and nano-islands and advanced spectral and autocorrelation analyses.

A feature of the software is its ability to partition a surface into sub-surfaces and to analyse a sub-surface in exactly the same way as a full surface.

The software is compliant with international and national standards, including the new ISO 25178 standard, the first international standard on a real surface texture and the ISO 16610 standard, which specifies advanced filtering techniques.

"ICMAB has carried out numerous studies using MountainsMap surface analysis software since we started using it in 2005", said Dr Angel Perez del Pino, Senior Technical Specialist at ICMAB.

"The software contains powerful and easy to use functions for visualising and analysing SPM measurement data".

"ICMAB is pleased to be able to participate officially in the evolution of the software, especially in the domain of nanotechnology".