| AVS 63rd International Symposium & Exhibition | |
| Applied Surface Science | Wednesday Sessions |
| Session AS-WeA |
| Session: | Multiple Technique Approaches for Real-World Industrial Problem Solving |
| Presenter: | Christopher Deeks, Thermo Fisher Scientific, UK |
| Authors: | C. Deeks, Thermo Fisher Scientific, UK P. Mack, Thermo Fisher Scientific, UK T.S. Nunney, Thermo Fisher Scientific, UK J.P.W. Treacy, Thermo Fisher Scientific, UK M. Meyer, Thermo Fisher Scientific, UK N. Hibbard, Thermo Fisher Scientific, UK |
| Correspondent: | Click to Email |
Advanced materials present ever increasing challenges to the analytical scientist. Composite materials built from nanostructures or ultra-thin films, often with complex chemistries present, are now required in a broad range of applications, and achieving full characterization is rarely managed using only one analysis method. To maintain confidence in the results from the utilization of several different methods, it is advantageous to be able to perform experiments on the same platform. Ideally, this should be without having to move the sample, removing the need for additional registration or processing to ensure that the data is being collected from the same position.
Often in surface analysis many related techniques are integrated onto the same system. These can include such practices as Ultraviolet Photoelectron Spectroscopy (UPS) for valence band and work function measurements. Ion Scattering Spectroscopy (ISS) is often used to give much more elemental surface information compared to XPS alone. Reflected Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy (REELS) can also give information on hydrogen in samples which cannot be detected by any of the previously named techniques, allowing full elemental analysis of samples with these combined.
An integrated system that has a Raman spectrometer with a micro-focused, monochromated XPS system can be used for even further analysis. The focal points are aligned such that data can be acquired from the same point simultaneously, and that the sizes of the analysis areas are comparable in size. This combined approach is particularly powerful when analyzing carbon nanomaterials. Chemical modifications of the material can be easily determined and quantified with XPS, and Raman offers a fast way of determining the quality and conformity of the material. Vibrational structure can also give more precise chemical information in some cases. The greater depth of field of the Raman spectrometer also offers bulk information to complement the surface sensitive XPS data.
In this presentation we will discuss the strengths of this combined, in-situ approach to surface analysis, illustrated with examples from a range of applications including carbon nanomaterials, microelectronics and geology.