FEI’s DualBeam system is being showcased at the 7th International Conference on Materials for Advanced Technologies.
The Helios NanoLab 660 DualBeam system provides imaging resolution and contrast SEMs, combined with what is claimed to be one of the fastest and most precise FIB milling performances available.
DualBeam systems are used to investigate the structure and function of materials at the nanometer scale, create prototypes of micro and nano electro-mechanical systems (MEMS and NEMS), and prepare ultrathin samples for atomic scale imaging and analysis in a transmission electron microscope (TEM).
“The Helios NanoLab 660 DualBeam adds our second-generation extreme high-resolution (XHR) SEM capability to the proven Helios DualBeam platform to provide sub-nanometer imaging resolution over a wide range of accelerating voltages,” said Trisha Rice, vice president and general manager, Materials Science Business Unit, FEI.
“The combination of high-resolution, high-contrast imaging and high-performance milling allows researchers to access more accurate information from their sample in less time. A new high-current mode enables faster analysis,” she added.
NanoBuilder 2.0, a second-generation nanoprototyping toolset now introduced on the Helios NanoLab 660, automatically fabricates 3D prototypes of nano- and microscale devices, such as nanosensors from computer-generated models, and thereby simplifies and accelerates the prototyping workflow.
Starting with a CAD design, the NanoBuilder software directs FIB milling and deposition to build intricate 3D structures with features ranging in size from nanometers to millimeters.
FEI’s second-generation XHR SEM uses proprietary electron optical and detector technologies to deliver sub-nanometer imaging resolution, with high signal collection efficiency and high contrast, over the widest range of accelerating voltages (0.5-30 kV).
Fast time to data is enabled both by the new in-column detection, which allows simultaneous topographic and materials contrast imaging and precise materials information from triple backscattered electron filtering, and by the new high-current SEM mode, which delivers up to 100 nA in a micrometric spot.
To optimally serve nanoprototyping and sample preparation applications, the Helios NanoLab 660 DualBeam supports FEI’s latest technology advancements, such as the EasyLift nanomanipulator, for fast, reliable thin sample preparation using the in situ lift out (INLO) method, and the MultiChem gas injector system, for gas-assisted etching.
