Fig. 1: The design schematics, functionalities, and photographs of the automatic transfer system.

a Schematic design of the core components of the presented automatic transfer system comprising an XYZ translation stage, an XYZ precision stage, an optical microscope, etc. All components are controlled by the software except for the manual telescopic axis. b Schematic diagram of the transfer process for micron-scale graphite flakes. Firstly, find the target position through manual operation. Secondly, the optical microscope is focused on the graphite flakes and the system will automatically find the tip and record the target flakes. Then, the graphite flake is pushed and picked up by the translation stages and probe. At the same time, the system judges whether the graphite flake is an SSL material and whether the operations are successful. Finally, the flakes would be transferred to the target position. c–e Photographs of the overall system (c), close-up of core components (d), and force sensors and tungsten tip (e).