A blog on the repair, operation and calibration of surface analysis systems and components including electron spectrometers, sputter ion guns and vacuum related hardware. Click on the Index tab below to see a list of all posts. Visit our website at http://www.rbdinstruments.com
Two exciting new features are now available for the 9103 Picoammeter: Synchronization and Device Identification. These features transform the 9103 from a single current measurement device to a multi-channel picoammeter. Up to 127 channels!
Picoammeter Synchronization
Synchronization is provided by RBD’s free Actuel picoammeter control and display software. Multiple instances of the software now communicate start and stop information for sampling and recording of data. Additional features are also being added to facilitate exporting and combining of data-sets from multiple picoammeters. While the synchronization is not time sample-accurate, this small offset will not be an issue for most applications.
The newest version of RBD’s Actuel software (1.3) is now available. This update includes additional features such as the ability to run in either Windows Admin or User mode.
Device Identification
9103 firmware now includes the ability to set a unique string identifier for your 9103 Picoammeter. The ID can be easily changed at any time by the user, and is recalled when the 9103 is powered off/on. This makes it easier to identify 9103 Picoammeters in a multiple-unit environment.
All new 9103’s will include this feature; existing units can be upgraded for a nominal fee and shipping charge.
More information on the 9103 Picoammeter can be found on our website.
Older PHI scanning auger systems use the model 97 SED preamplifier to obtain secondary electron images. Occasionally you will not be able to get a TV image on your scanning auger system but are not sure what the problem is. This post will explain how to test the 97 SED preamplifier to determine if it is working properly or not.
For purposes of this test, we will run the J3 video output from the 97 SED preamplifier directly to the TV monitor video input. If you have a 660 or 4300 scanning auger system where the image is displayed directly on the PC monitor you can leave the J3 cable connected.
Turn off the 32-100 electron multiplier supply main power. For 660 and 4300 systems, turn off the card rack power.
Disconnect the J1 NEG and J2 POS cables from the 97 SED preamplifier. That will remove the high voltage from the preamplifier and ensure that there is no risk if electrical shock.
Carefully remove the 97 SED preamplifier from the SED feedthrough flange. Hold the 97 SED preamplifier firmly when loosening the screws and lift the preamplifier straight up and off of the SED flange so that you do not risk breaking the ceramic feedthroughs on the SED flange.
Remove the J3 video out cable and connect a BNC cable from J3 video out on the 97 SED preamplifier to the Video In on the back of the TV monitor. If you have a 660 or 4300 scanning auger system, disregard this step.
Note the position of the COL tab on the 97 SED preamplifier as shown in the pictures below.
Turn on the 32-100 electron multiplier supply or card rack power supply.
Make sure that the 32-100 SED voltage is turned to OFF and the SED voltage knob is fully CCW. On 660 or 4300 systems, after going through the turn on sequence set the SED voltage to Zero in the scanning dialog box.
Use a wire or screwdriver and “tickle” the COL tab on the 97 SED preamplifier.
When tickling the 97 SED COL tab you should see a significant amount of noise on the TV monitor. If so, then the 97 SED preamplifier is working properly. There could be contrast or gain issues with the preamplifier that may not show up with this test, but essentially you can rule out the 97 SED preamplifier as the reason that you are not getting a TV image.
Additional information:
On 660 and 4300 systems this test may be inconclusive as the 79-170 or 81-175 scanning electronics may have a problem on the video board. If you do not see noise in the TV dialog box when performing this test then you can monitor the J3 video output on the 97 SED preamplifier and except to see what appears as high frequency noise in the range of 0 to +2V DC when the 97 SED preamplifier COL lead is being tickled.
If the 97 SED preamplifier test passes but you are not getting a TV image there are a few other possibilities.
No TV raster. An easy way to test that is to acquire an elastic peak in the point mode and then turn on the TV with a low magnification. The elastic peak should become jagged if the TV raster is working properly. You can also use an oscilloscope and measure the waveforms on the end of the CMA deflection cable.
No SED voltage. You can use a high voltage probe and measure the voltage between the NEG and POS cables that connect to the 97 SED preamplifier. CAUTION – high voltage is present! Refer this test to qualified personnel who are trained to work with high voltage.
A defective or worn out electron multiplier. If you have a megohmmeter that can measure over 100 Meg ohms (many meters can only measure resistance to 20 Meg ohms) you can measure the resistance between the NEG and POS feedthrough on the SED flange. Typical resistance for a good electron multiplier is 80 to 120 Meg ohms. If the resistance is 150 Meg ohms or higher the electron multiplier should be replaced.
Use care when remounting the 97 SED preamplifier to the SED flange as the SED feedthroughs can be easily broken. Make sure the 32-100 or card rack power supply is OFF when reinstalling the 97 SED preamplifier or cables.
RBD Instruments provides repair services and loaners for the 97 SED preamplifier, and we also provide the electron multipliers. If you need help diagnosing problems your system or parts, please visit our website at rbdinstruments dot com.
RBD’s 9103 USB Picoammeter and Actuel application (included in your purchase) are compatible with a number of hardware devices and operating systems. The complex nature of operating systems and hardware, as well as the differences between 9103 hardware and software compatibility, render a simple compatibility table somewhat lacking in clarity. This guide will hopefully serve to answer the most common questions concerning 9103 Picoammeter compatibility.
9103 Picoammeter
Using the 9103 Picoammeter with Either Actuel or a Custom Application
While many customers will only ever need to use the 9103 with the Actuel data-logging / graphing software, others will want custom or advanced capability and compatibility. Happily, the 9103 is fully programmable in a simple, well-documented ASCII language. We’ll post more in-depth coverage of 9103 programming in the near future. For now, just keep in mind that writing an application to communicate with the 9103 is relatively simple, though of course your application can be as complex as you want it to be.
9103 Hardware / Firmware Compatibility
The 9103 uses industry-standard USB interface hardware based on a chip from FTDI. That means the 9103 is compatible with the all the operating systems supported by FTDI, as long as the device has a compliant USB port. If you are planning to program your own custom control/display application for the 9103, the following operating systems are supported:
Windows 8 x64
Windows 7
Windows 7 x64
Windows Server 2008
Windows Server 2008 x64
Windows Vista
Windows Vista x64
Windows Server 2003
Windows Server 2003 x64
Windows XP
Windows XP x64
Windows ME
Windows 98
Linux
Mac OS X
Mac OS 9
Mac OS 8
Windows CE.NET (Version 4.2 and greater)
Android
Note that the the iOS operating system, installed on the iPhone, iPad, and iPod devices, is not currently supported.
More information on FTDI’s operating system support, as well as drivers for those operating systems, can be found here:
The Actuel application provided with the 9103 is a Windows PC-only application and compatible with the following operating systems.
Windows 8 x64
Windows 7
Windows 7 x64
Windows Vista
Windows Vista x64
Windows XP (Service Pack 3)
Windows XP x64 (Service Pack 3)
Note that the Microsoft .NET 3.5 library, included with the Actuel application and freely available from Microsoft, must also be installed.
Special Considerations for Using the 9103 on Apple Mac Hardware
While the Actuel application is a Windows application, keep in mind that Apple Mac line now runs on Intel hardware, meaning that Actuel is compatible with any Mac installation running Windows. In fact, Actuel was developed on a MacBook Pro running Windows as a virtual operating system.
Also, since USB port compatibility is operating-system dependent, you can (and must, in fact), use the drivers compatible with your operating system regardless of whether you are running PC or Mac hardware when you creating a custom application for your 9103. If, for example, you are running Linux on a Mac (using Bootcamp), you would use the FTDI drivers for Linux.
The 9103 hardware is compatible with all the operating systems listed for the FTDI drivers when that OS is running on Mac hardware.
Actuel is compatible with the Windows operating systems listed above when running on Mac hardware. The following configurations are examples:
Bootcamp (runs Windows as a boot drive independent from iOS)
VMWare Fusion (runs as a virtual operating system on iOS)
Parallels (similar to Fusion; untested as of this posting)
National Instruments LabView Compatibility
LabView provides a rich environment for programming a current measurement device such as the 9103 USB Picoammeter, which is compatible for any operating system and hardware device that is supported by BOTH Labview and FTDI.
I hope this answers most of your 9103 compatibility questions. Keep an eye out for another blog post in the near future with more helpful information on programming the 9103 using simple ASCII commands.
Two exciting new features are now available for the 9103 Picoammeter: Synchronization and Device Identification. These features transform the 9103 from a single current measurement device to a multi-channel picoammeter. Up to 127 channels!
