November 29, 2010
A 2-in-1 hybrid ion milling system capable of both cross-section and flat ion milling
Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation (TOKYO:8036, Hitachi High-Tech) today announced the release of the hybrid IM4000 Ion Milling System from December 1. The system is used to prepare specimens for SEM imaging and analysis such as EDX and EBSP, and is capable of both cross-section and flat ion milling.
The ion milling system uses a wide Argon ion beam to irradiate specimens and uses the sputtering effect* to polish the surface without stressing it, making it useful in a multitude of different fields and applications such as semiconductors, materials, research, and quality control.
The newly-developed IM4000 features a removable specimen holder that allows for both cross-section milling, where the ion beam irradiates the specimen from above and cuts a planar cross section through the specimen along the edge of a mask located between the specimen and ion gun, and flat milling, where a wide and smooth surface of approximately 5mm in diameter is achieved by shifting the ion beam axis and specimen rotational axis, and irradiating the specimen from an angle between 30-80°.
The IM4000 also features a high milling rate ion gun with a processing speed of 300μm/hr (3 times faster than previous models**) that dramatically reduces the time required for time-consuming cross-section milling.
Hitachi High-Tech will have a demonstration system on display at SEMICON Japan 2010 at Makuhari Messe from December 1. Deliveries are scheduled to begin from March 2011 and Hitachi High-Tech expects sales of 150 systems for the year.
Item | Description | |
---|---|---|
Cross-section milling holder | Flat milling holder | |
Gas | Argon gas | |
Accelerating voltage | 0-6kV | |
Maximum milling rate (Si) | Approx. 300µm/hr | Approx. 2µm/hr |
Maximum specimen size | 20W x 12D x 7H mm | Φ50 x 25H mm |
Gas flow rate control system | Mass flow controller | |
Evacuation system | Turbo molecular pump (33L/s) + Rotary pump (135L/min at 50Hz, 162L/min at 60Hz) | |
Size | 616W x 705D x 312H mm | |
Weight | Main unit 48kg + Rotary pump 28kg |
IM4000 Ion Milling System
Hiroshi Kato
Marketing Department, Electron Microscope
Analytical Systems Sales Division
Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation
Tel: +81-3-3504-7714
Aiko Matsumoto
Public & Investor Relations Group
Secretary's Office
Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation
Tel: +81-3-3504-3258