Instrument Description
The shielded FEI Helios plasma focused ion beam (PFIB), being FEI's high-end microscope platform, enables state-of-the-art research to be performed on irradiated materials in the IMCL facility. Compared to the standard liquid metal gallium ion source, the xenon plasma ion source can achieve 20x-60x higher milling rates. The very high-resolution electron column combined with this plasma FIB source enables high-resolution, high-throughput 3-D characterization of irradiated nuclear materials. The high milling rate xenon plasma FIB also enables larger areas/volumes to be analyzed (>10 times larger than conventional FIB sources). The system is also equipped with the EBS3 control software to encompass uncontrolled serial FIB sectioning, SEM imaging and EDS/EBSD characterization. The microscope has the EasyLift EX NanoManipulator for in-situ sample transfer and a platinum gas injection system for deposition. The analytical equipment supplied by EDAX includes an energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS) and an electron backscatter diffractometer (EBSD).
Applications
The main uses for this instrument are microstructural and elemental characterization as well as high-throughput site-specific transmission electron microscopy and atom probe tomography sample preparation from irradiated nuclear fuel, cladding and structural materials. This instrument is also used for performing 3-D microstructural and elemental characterization (tomography).
Specifications
Analytical suite:
Octane Elite SiN 25mm2 EDS EDAX Hikari Super EBSD