Scripted Automation for Efficient Control and Autonomous Experimentation with AFM

The sensitivity, resolution and multi-modal capabilities of the atomic force microscope make it attractive in development and characterization of devices and materials. NanoScope API, a new application programming interface (API), has been developed for safe and efficient measurement of large samples and/or sets of samples with Dimension AFM systems.

We consider the use of this API to control system parameters, conduct nanolithography, check system status, collect data, change modes, and move the stage to access different samples or locations on a 200 mm sample. By integrating this new API with machine learning–driven experimental control we further demonstrate how the SPM can be automated for materials discovery. Finally, we discuss how agentic AI can be harnessed to access this API and reduce or eliminate the burden of coding for the user.

• Introduction to nanoscope_api: a new interface that provides safe and flexible access to control of Bruker Dimension series AFMs
• Examples of scripted instrument control for applications ranging from lithography to control of key instrument parameters during scanning
• Integration of scripted AFM with external instrumentation to expand system capabilities
• Automated experimentation for efficient exploration of combinatorial libraries for materials discovery
• Agentic AI for easy script development

In this webinar, presenters will demonstrate the use of NanoScope API for safe and flexible control of Bruker Dimension series AFMs. They will also show how integrating this API with machine learning and agentic AI automates the SPM for materials discovery while reducing the coding burden on users.

Join us for this webinar to see:

• The new nanoscope_api interface that provides access to control Dimension AFMs
• Examples of scripted instrument control for lithography, parameter control, and more
• Integrations and implementations for added utility and usability, from external instrumentation to machine learning and agentic AI.

Speaker: Dr. Simoné Bovio (RDP laboratory and PLATIM-LyMIC imaging platform, Ecole Normale Supérieure, Lyon, France)

Dr. Simoné Bovio works as a microscopy engineer in the RDP laboratory and at the PLATIM-LyMIC imaging platform at the Ecole Normale Supérieure in Lyon, France. He obtained his master’s degree in physics at the University of Milan where he also earned his PhD at the CIMaINa lab under the supervision of Dr. Alessandro Podestà in 2012. After spending the rest of 2012 in the Amazon rain forest in Ecuador with an Italian NGO, in 2013 he joined the team of Frank Lafont, the CMPI, in Lille, France, where he made his first steps in biology through the study of the mechanical behavior of animal and human cells using AFM nano-indentation. He has had a permanent position at the ENS in Lyon since 2017, where he started developing his expertise in indentation measurements on living plant samples and where his interest for the measurement of turgor pressure developed and grew.  

Speaker: Prof. Gleb Yakubov (School of Food Science and Nutrition, University of Leeds, United Kingdom)

Professor Gleb Yakubov holds the Chair in Food Biopolymers at the University of Leeds. He completed his PhD in Physical Chemistry at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research, specialising in biopolymer systems and colloidal probe AFM force spectroscopy. Prior to joining Leeds, he held academic positions at the University of Nottingham and The University of Queensland, following nearly a decade in industrial R&D within the global consumer goods sector.

Professor Yakubov’s research sits at the interface of colloid science, soft matter physics, polymer science, and biophysics. His work focuses on understanding how biopolymer structure and interactions govern the functionality of biopolymer systems, such as foods, plant cell walls, biomaterials, and biopolymer gels. His expertise includes colloidal probe AFM force spectroscopy, rheology, and complex carbohydrate analysis. He leads the Food Biopolymer Research Laboratory, where interdisciplinary approaches are used to investigate the structuring and mechanics of complex biological and food materials. Among the laboratory’s recent innovations is the BioFluidic Microscope (BFM), an integrated platform combining ultra-fast confocal imaging with atomic force microscopy and nanofluidic functionality, enabling high-resolution exploration of localised biochemical and physiological processes in biological and bioinspired systems.

Professor Yakubov has authored more than 150 peer-reviewed papers and book chapters, holds several patents, and has contributed widely to advances in food biophysics, biomaterials, and sustainable food technologies. His work has influenced contemporary understanding of polysaccharide functionality, lubrication phenomena, plant-based materials, and the development of healthier and more sustainable foods.