Time Domain Resolution of Nanopositioning Systems*

In this article, the resolution of a nanopositioning system is defined as the smallest distance between two non-overlapping points. Techniques are then described for estimating the closed-loop resolution from time-domain recordings of the contributing noise sources. Practical guidelines are also discussed to ensure statistically valid estimates. Experimental results show that the resolution of a piezoelectric tube nanopositioner is 2.1 nm with a closed-loop bandwidth of 100 Hz. This figure is identical to previous resolution estimates obtained using more involved frequency-domain measurements.