Nanoscientists and engineers use special tools called scanning probe microscopes to “see” the nanoscale features on a material’s surface by feeling around with a sharp probe tip. In this activity, students analyze the a mystery landscape by probing. This activity has been used in a wide variety of settings, ranging from middle- and high-school classroom to professional development workshops for K12 educators.
Full Instructions
Data Analysis Instructions
Data Sheet for Mapping Unknowns
Data Sheet for Transforming Collected Data
Data Sheet for Building 3D model
Materials
- Shoe boxes containing mystery landscapes
- Probes (kabob skewers or chopsticks work well), marked out with 1 cm increments
- Rulers (if students need to mark out increments on probes)
- Materials for building 3D models (e.g. sugar cubes, marshmallows, Legos)