{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,11]],"date-time":"2026-08-11T10:54:44Z","timestamp":1786445684313,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":46,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"18","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2024,9,21]],"date-time":"2024-09-21T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1726876800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"European Union\u2019s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme","award":["101007417"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["101007417"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Sensors"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Atomic-scale imaging using scanning probe microscopy is a pivotal method for investigating the morphology and physico-chemical properties of nanostructured surfaces. Time resolution represents a significant limitation of this technique, as typical image acquisition times are on the order of several seconds or even a few minutes, while dynamic processes\u2014such as surface restructuring or particle sintering, to be observed upon external stimuli such as changes in gas atmosphere or electrochemical potential\u2014often occur within timescales shorter than a second. In this article, we present a fully redesigned field programmable gate array (FPGA)-based instrument that can be integrated into most commercially available standard scanning probe microscopes. This instrument not only significantly accelerates the acquisition of atomic-scale images by orders of magnitude but also enables the tracking of moving features such as adatoms, vacancies, or clusters across the surface (\u201catom tracking\u201d) due to the parallel execution of sophisticated control and acquisition algorithms and the fast exchange of data with an external processor. Each of these measurement modes requires a complex series of operations within the FPGA that are explained in detail.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/s24186108","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2024,9,24]],"date-time":"2024-09-24T08:56:06Z","timestamp":1727168166000},"page":"6108","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":4,"title":["Design of an FPGA-Based Controller for Fast Scanning Probe Microscopy"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"24","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5572-7571","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Leonardo","family":"Gregorat","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"DIA (Dipartimento di Ingegneria e Architettura), University of Trieste, 34127 Trieste, Italy"},{"name":"Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A. Science Park, Strada Statale 14, km 163.5, 34149 Basovizza, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4976-2033","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Marco","family":"Cautero","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A. Science Park, Strada Statale 14, km 163.5, 34149 Basovizza, Italy"},{"name":"Dipartimento di Fisica, University of Trieste, 34127 Trieste, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2953-8886","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Sergio","family":"Carrato","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"DIA (Dipartimento di Ingegneria e Architettura), University of Trieste, 34127 Trieste, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-3169-7261","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Dario","family":"Giuressi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Elettra-Sincrotrone Trieste S.C.p.A. 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