
Home	Company	Technology	Applications	Contact Us	Our Mission

Welcome to QSpec Technology. Your Choice for SIMS analysis.

Welcome to QSpec Technology Inc., the dedicated SIMS analytical service laboratory. With a highly experienced team and state-of-the-art instrumentation, we can assist you in enhancing yield and device performance and reduce R&D cycle time.

Go ahead. Give us a call. See what we can do for you.

The Cameca magnetic sector mass spectrometer consists of an ion source, a mass-selective analyzer, and an ion detector. Mass spectrometers use the difference in mass-to-charge ratio (m/e) of ionized atoms or molecules to separate them from each other. The general operation of a mass spectrometer is to create gas-phase ions, separate the ions in space or time based on their mass-to-charge ratio, and measure the quantity of ions of each mass-to-charge ratio.

The fundamental basis of SIMS analyses is the measurement of the mass and intensity of secondary ions produced in a vacuum by sputtering the sample surface with energetic ion or neutral beams. The focused ion or neutral beam (referred to as the primary beam) is directed to the sample surface, removing material at a rate determined principally by the intensity, mass, energy of the primary species and the physical and chemical characteristics of the sample. A small fraction of these sputter products is ionized, and these ions are the secondary ions in secondary ion mass spectrometry. The secondary ions are then accelerated into a mass spectrometer and separated according to their mass-to-charge ratio.

SIMS is capable of detecting all the elements of the periodic table, including their isotopes. SIMS can achieve detection sensitivity of 1e12 to 1e16 atoms/cm3 for most trace elements. Key features of SIMS capability are:
*Detection of all elements from H to U
*Trace element analysis to 0.1ppb - 0.1ppm detection limit
*Quantitative with standards
*Depth resolution ~ 10nm
*Small area analysis (<25 mm)
*Monolayer depth information
*Isotope abundance determination

Instrument

Technology

Capability

Depth Profile

A depth profile of a sample may be obtained simply by recording sequential SIMS spectra as the surface is gradually eroded away by the incident ion beam probe. The primary ion beam is rastered across a fixed dimension of the sample surface. Secondary ion intensities are recorded as the primary ion beam drills into the sample. The ion intensities are converted to concentration using the SIMS relative sensitivity factors determined from measurements of well calibrated standards and the sputtered depth of the crater is measured with a profilometer. The result is a SIMS depth profile.