DOSE-BASED END-POINTING FOR LOW-KV FIB MILLING IN TEM SAMPLE PREPARATION

• Main Authors: THOMAS G MILLER, JASON ARJAVAC, MICHAEL MORIARTY
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 17.03.2014
• Subjects: BASIC ELECTRIC ELEMENTS; ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS; ELECTRICITY; INVESTIGATING OR ANALYSING MATERIALS BY DETERMINING THEIRCHEMICAL OR PHYSICAL PROPERTIES; MEASURING; PHYSICS; TESTING

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method, system, and computer-readable medium for forming transmission electron microscopy sample lamellae using a focused ion beam.SOLUTION: The method, system, and computer-readable medium includes: directing a high energy focused ion beam toward a bulk volume of material; milling away a volume of unwanted material to produce an unfinished sample lamella with one or more exposed faces having a damage layer; characterizing the material removal rate of the focused ion beam; subsequent to characterizing the removal rate, directing a low energy focused ion beam toward the unfinished sample lamella for a predetermined milling time to deliver a specified dose of ions per area from the low energy focused ion beam; and milling the unfinished sample lamella with the low energy focused ion beam to remove at least a portion of the damage layer to produce the finished sample lamella including at least a portion of the feature of interest.