The ability to image individual atoms in scanning probe microscopies can be mimicked with a refrigerator magnet. As a magnetic probe strip is pulled along the back, variations in magnetic field can be directly detected.
More information on refrigerator magnets
A light beam reflects off a cantilever probe to map a refrigerator magnet.
A laser beam reflects off a cantilever probe to map a refrigerator magnet.
Even the movement of a concrete block wall can be observed with enough
amplification. A metal rod fastened to a wall with double-stick foam tape
rests on a pin with attached mirror, and a laser beam is reflected off
the mirror to show the motion of the wall. (Thanks to Seyfollah Maleki
for telling us about this demonstration.) Diagram of the experiment in a new window
