| AVS 61st International Symposium & Exhibition | |
| Applied Surface Science | Thursday Sessions |
| Session AS-ThP |
| Session: | Applied Surface Science Poster Session |
| Presenter: | Kathryn Lloyd, DuPont Corporate Center for Analytical Sciences |
| Authors: | K.G. Lloyd, DuPont Corporate Center for Analytical Sciences J.R. Marsh, DuPont Corporate Center for Analytical Sciences |
| Correspondent: | Click to Email |
Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS), carried out with liquid metal primary ion sources and time-of-flight mass analyzers, has long been recognized as a means of obtaining lateral distributions of species at the surface via detection of chemically-specific molecular ions. As efforts continue to routinely achieve sub-micron lateral resolution from organic and electrically-insulating samples, it is worth noting that the technique easily lends itself to large-area (millimeters to centimeters) chemical mapping. This capability fills an important niche in the chemical mapping “toolbox” and is relevant to many industrial surface-related problems.
For small-area (less than 500x500 µ m2) mapping, the primary ion beam optics are (usually randomly) rastered across a pixel array spanning the area of interest, and secondary ion spectral data is collected at each pixel. In the simplest implementation of large-area mapping, the sample stage is moved in regular (essentially large pixel) intervals under an optically-stationary primary ion beam. A more optimal approach is to combine both small-area ion beam rastering with stage rastering in a so-called “patch” configuration.
These large-area mapping acquisitions typically take 30 minutes. Coupled with multivariate analysis, they provide a chemical view of the surface not easily obtainable from other techniques. Examples shown will include optimization of anti-stat coating, understanding fabric color streaking, and assessment of printing uniformity.