Deformation-Free Topography from Combined Scanning Force and Tunnelling Experiments

We show that by measuring force and stiffness on a constant-current scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) contour a deformation-free topography can be extracted. With reference to mono- and bicomponent self-assembled monolayers, we find that the characteristic depression pattern and the protrusions on a multicomponent film found in STM are to a great extent due to electronic effects.