Scanning tunneling microscope
The STM is called a microscope because it makes pictures of tiny objects. But it is different -- it doesn't have anything to look into with our eyes. It is similar to feeling the shape of objects on a table in a dark room: you can draw a picture of the shape even though you did not seen it with your eyes. The STM does this for very tiny objects. It works by scanning a sharp metal needle back and forth across a surface, and uses electric current instead of force to sense the shape. When the tip of sharp metal needle is brought very close to the surface of a thing being studied, a voltage between the two causes electrons to flow through the space between them. The electrons cross this space by a process called quantum tunneling, which gives the STM its name. This tiny current of electrons flows when the tip is almost touching the surface. The current changes as the probe moves along the surface. This change is recorded by a computer, which makes it into a picture that we can see.