Computer-Controlled Experiments in the Surface Forces Apparatus with a CCD-Spectrograph

We present a computer-controlled technique to measure the distance-dependent forces in the surface forces apparatus. The power of our setup is shown by a measurement of the repulsive forces between mica surfaces immersed in a 0.01 M NaCl solution. At close distances we find an oscillatory force with a periodicity of 0.30 nm, which roughly corresponds to the diameter of a water molecule. For the distance determination we use the standard interferometric technique: the interferometer consists of a medium sandwiched between two mica sheets of equal thickness silvered on the backside. The surface separation is measured by comparing the resonance wavelength to the one obtained from contacting mica sheets. By substitution of the eye by a CCD-camera we improve the reproducibility of the method and we can determine the cavity parameters quantitatively.