Idaho National Laboratory has development a new type of ion beam profiler that reconstructs the ion beam intensity in two dimensions with a single measurement device.
This technology is available for licensing. More information can be found at this link –
Companies interested in learning more about this licensing opportunity should contact Kala Majeti at td@inl.gov or by calling 248-877-8866
As the 11-065s get older we are starting to see instances where the beam voltage, condenser voltage or objective voltage becomes unstable as the front panel potentiometers are adjusted.
The front panel potentiometers can become “noisy” as a result of oxidation on the internal contacts. In addition to causing instability in the output voltages, it is also possible for the potentiometer output potentiometer “open” up. When this happens, the output of the beam, condenser or objective supply can go as high as 6.4kV as shown in the picture below in which a 1000:1 high voltage probe is used to measure the beam voltage supply.
In the case of the condenser or objective supplies becoming unstable the result is that the ion beam might go in and out of focus, or the ion beam can get completely shut off. However, if the beam voltage becomes unstable and goes up to 6.5kV then the opto-couplers on the HV1 board will become damaged and then the emission or pressure circuits will no longer function properly. The opto-couplers are only rated up to 5kV.
If you suspect that your 11-065 beam, condenser or objective supplies are unstable, here is how to test the HV1 board outputs;
If the Beam voltage potentiometer was noisy and the voltage went higher than 5kV, then the opto-couplers were likely damaged. If your do not get any emission current, then most likely U6 on the HV2 board was damaged and should be replaced. Other components may be damaged as well. If the emission works but not the pressure, U7 is likely damaged.
On the really old 11-065s, U6 was a TIL109 opto. When that part became obsolete about 20 years ago, it was replaced with a SPX314 opto. Most of the 11-065s in the field have been updated to the SPX314 (a modification is required). If you have a really old 11-065 with the TIL109 opto-couplers, RBD still has a few of those in stock.
Recently, the SPX314 has become obsolete and is hard to find. It can be replaced with a OPI 110 opto-coupler which is also has 15kV of isolation, so even if the HV1 board goes up to 6.4kV this opto-coupler will not get damaged. The OPI 110 will not only repair the problem, it will ensure that this particular problem does not happen again.
There is no modification required to switch from a SPX314 to an OPI 110, but the pin outs are slightly different and are shown in the pictures below.
The OPI 110 opto-couplers are available from most major electronic part suppliers including Mouser.
Here is a link to the datasheet – OPI 110 datasheet
If you need technical help to repair your 11-065 ion gun control you can contact RBD Instruments Inc. for assistance. We offer technical support, repair/ calibration and the use of a loaner 11-065 while your unit is being repaired.
Why do you need sputter rate standards anyway? Each ion source will produce a different sputter rate depending on the conditions that the ion source is operated at, as well as other factors such as the angle of the ion source to the sample. Changing the beam voltage, condenser and focus (beam size), pressure (amount of argon or other gas) and raster area all affect the sputter rate. By using a sputter rate standard you can characterize your ion source for a particular set of operating conditions for a known oxide layer thickness of standard material (Ta2O5 or SiO2).
To further complicate things, the sputter rate of different materials varies greatly and that makes it very difficult to accurately know the true sputter rate for compounds and multi layer samples.
The link to this SPECs article for some very helpful insights into sputter rates on different materials:
And, here is a link to a PNNL publication on the sputter rates of oxide films relative to SiO2.
TaO5 sputter rate standard
RBD Instruments provides a 1000 Angstrom oxide layer TaO5 sputter rate standard which is approximately .75 X .50 inch in size. Both sides of the standard can be used, so one standard can last a long time. The RBD part number is TA2O5RE.
SiO2 sputter rate standard
RBD Instruments provides a 1000 Angstrom oxide layer SiO2 sputter rate standard which is approximately .50 X .50 inch in size and comes in a two pack. The RBD part number is SIO2CALRE and like the TaO5 standard, both sides can be used.
To request a quote for either standard, contact RBD here or go to the upper right hand corner of the RBD Instruments website and create a sales ticket. (www.rbdinstruments.com)