The AFM has been applied to problems in a wide range of disciplines of the natural sciences, including solid-state physics, semiconductor science and technology, molecular engineering, polymer chemistry and physics, surface chemistry, molecular biology, cell biology, and medicine.
Applications in the field of solid state physics include (a) the identification of atoms at a surface, (b) the evaluation of interactions between a specific atom and its neighboring atoms, and (c) the study of changes in physical properties arising from changes in an atomic arrangement through atomic manipulation.
In molecular biology, AFM can be used to study the structure and mechanical properties of protein complexes and assemblies. For example, AFM has been used to image microtubules and measure their stiffness.
In cellular biology, AFM can be used to attempt to distinguish cancer cells and normal cells based on a hardness of cells, and to evaluate interactions between a specific cell and its neighboring cells in a competitive culture system. AFM can also be used to indent cells, to study how they regulate the stiffness or shape of the cell membrane or wall.
In some variations, electric potentials can also be scanned using conducting cantilevers. In more advanced versions, currents can be passed through the tip to probe the electrical conductivity or transport of the underlying surface, but this is a challenging task with few research groups reporting consistent data (as of 2004).