The resolution of scanning tunnelling microscopes can be
improved dramatically by attaching small molecules or atoms to their tip. The
resulting images were the first to show the geometric structure of molecules
and have generated a lot of interest among scientists over the last few years.
Scientists from Forschungszentrum Jülich and the Academy of Sciences of the
Czech Republic in Prague have now used computer simulations to gain deeper
insights into the physics of these new imaging techniques. One of these
techniques was presented in the journal Science by American scientists this
spring. The results have now been published in the journal Physical Review
Letters.