Wednesday, May 13, 2026
New Stupid Simple Probe Zero Theory
With the new 4K USB microscope I can see ~5μm motion of the probe. I was mucking around with it (photo below) and had a revelation:
If the probe is in firm contact with the slide, and I jog the slide by 20μm in the direction corresponding to horizontally across the screen, then I can see the probe tip jerk. If I raise the probe until it no longer jerks, I am no longer in significant contact with the slide.
I bounced the probe up and down a few times, and (according to my instrumentation anyway) I can get that right to the micron.
Next, seeing what happens with Sharpie when I put that theory to the test in the real world. Probably with a slightly cleaner slide. Hey, I needed to see the surface, right?
