| AVS 63rd International Symposium & Exhibition | |
| Advanced Ion Microscopy Focus Topic | Wednesday Sessions |
| Session HI-WeA |
| Session: | 10 Years of GFIS Microscopy |
| Presenter: | Bill Ward, Entrepreneur, Scientist, Inventor, and Consultant |
| Correspondent: | Click to Email |
More than 50 years of research by many of the top physicists in our field culminated in a final effort to resolve the formidable problem of stabilizing the Gas Field Ion Source. It was the collective opinion that several of the physical problems were unsolvable before our efforts began at Micrion nearly 20 years ago.
Our inventive process, the scientific breakthroughs and the many failures are presented in story-like fashion to explain how we successfully created the brightest ion source known to mankind. The human side of our first ten years of research which led to the successful creation of the Single Atom Ion Source and the Helium Ion Microscope is discussed. How the Entrepreneurial Spirit played a significant role in solving the final technical issues will be presented.
This perspective is offered with the hope of inspiring others to dream beyond their perceived limits.