Fabrication and Characterization of Molybdenum Tips for Scanning Tunneling Microscopy and Spectroscopy

We present a method for the preparation of bulk molybdenum tips for scanning Tunneling Microscopy and Spectroscopy (STM - STS) and we assess their potential in performing high resolution imaging and local spectroscop by measurements on different single crystal surfaces in UHV, namely Au(111), Si(111)-7x7 and titanium oxide 2D ordered nanostructures supported on Au(111). The fabrication method is versatile and can be extended to other metals, e.g. cobalt