Fast Scanning Probe Microscopy via Machine Learning: Non-rectangular scans with compressed sensing and Gaussian process optimization

Fast scanning probe microscopy enabled via machine learning allows for a broad range of nanoscale, temporally resolved physics to be uncovered. However, such examples for functional imaging are few in number. Here, using piezoresponse force microscopy (PFM) as a model application, we demonstrate a factor of 5.8 improvement in imaging rate using a combination of sparse spiral scanning with compressive sensing and Gaussian processing reconstruction. It is found that even extremely sparse scans offer strong reconstructions with less than 6 % error for Gaussian processing reconstructions. Further, we analyze the error associated with each reconstructive technique per reconstruction iteration finding the error is similar past approximately 15 iterations, while at initial iterations Gaussian processing outperforms compressive sensing. This study highlights the capabilities of reconstruction techniques when applied to sparse data, particularly sparse spiral PFM scans, with broad applications in scanning probe and electron microscopies.