Jesse D. Olson

First Data from a Commercial Local Electrode Atom Probe (LEAP)

The first dedicated local electrode atom probes (LEAP [a trademark of Imago Scientific Instruments Corporation]) have been built and tested as commercial prototypes. Several key performance parameters have been markedly improved relative to conventional three-dimensional atom probe (3DAP) designs. The Imago LEAP can operate at a sustained data collection rate of 1 million atoms/minute. This is some 600 times faster than the next fastest atom probe and large images can be collected in less than 1 h that otherwise would take many days. The field of view of the Imago LEAP is about 40 times larger than conventional 3DAPs. This makes it possible to analyze regions that are about 100 nm diameter by 100 nm deep containing on the order of 50 to 100 million atoms with this instrument. Several example applications that illustrate the advantages of the LEAP for materials analysis are presented.

Advances in Pulsed-Laser Atom Probe: Instrument and Specimen Design for Optimum Performance

The performance of the pulsed-laser atom probe can be limited by both instrument and specimen factors. The experiments described in this article were designed to identify these factors so as to provide direction for further instrument and specimen development. Good agreement between voltage-pulsed and laser-pulsed data is found when the effective pulse fraction is less than 0.2 for pulsed-laser mode. Under the conditions reported in this article, the thermal tails of the peaks in the mass spectra did not show any significant change when produced with either a 10-ps or a 120-fs pulsed-laser source. Mass resolving power generally improves as the laser spot size and laser wavelength are decreased and as the specimen tip radius, specimen taper angle, and thermal diffusivity of the specimen material are increased. However, it is shown that two of the materials used in this study, aluminum and stainless steel, depend on these factors differently. A one-dimensional heat flow model is explored to explain these differences. The model correctly predicts the behavior of the aluminum samples, but breaks down for the stainless steel samples when the tip radius is large. A more accurate three-dimensional model is needed to overcome these discrepancies.

Toward atom probe tomography of microelectronic devices

Atom probe tomography and scanning transmission electron microscopy has been used to analyze a commercial microelectronics device prepared by depackaging and focused ion beam milling. Chemical and morphological data are presented from the source, drain and channel regions, and part of the gate oxide region of an Intel® i5-650 p-FET device demonstrating feasibility in using these techniques to investigate commercial chips.

Three-dimensional atomic-scale mapping of Pd in Ni1−xPdxSi∕Si(100) thin films

Atom-probe tomography was utilized to map the three-dimensional distribution of Pd atoms in nickel monosilicide thin films on Si(100). A solid-solution Ni0.95Pd0.05 film on a Si(100) substrate was subjected to rapid thermal processing plus steady-state annealing to simulate the thermal processing experienced by NiSi source and drain contacts in standard complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor processes. Pd is found to segregate at the (Ni0.95Pd0.05)Si∕Si(100) heterophase interface, which may provide a previously unrecognized contribution to monosilicide stabilization. The silicide-Si heterophase interface was reconstructed in three dimensions on an atomic scale and its chemical roughness was evaluated.

Intermixing and phase separation at the atomic scale in Co-rich (Co,Fe) and Cu multilayered nanostructures

Despite the fact that Co-rich (Co,Fe) alloys and Cu are immiscible materials in bulk form, evidence of thermally induced mixing at the atomic scale has been observed in thin-film multilayers of (Co,Fe) and Cu. However, long term anneals at lower temperatures produced a breakup of the multilayers into a two-phase mixture of (Co,Fe) and Cu particles. The observations were made with the use of the three-dimensional atom probe technique, with supporting evidence from differential scanning calorimetry and x-ray diffraction. Besides their scientific importance, these results are of interest where these (Co,Fe) and Cu thin films are used to produce the giant magnetoresistive effect.

Development of Atom Probe Tomography with In-situ STEM Imaging and Diffraction

Atom probe tomography (APT) allows for compositional analysis of materials at the atomic scale through imaging time-of-flight mass spectroscopy. 3-D volume renderings of atomic-scale chemistry are possible following reconstruction algorithms. Unfortunately, a-priori information about the electric field necessary for evaporation of individual ions is not well documented for many materials, but is required for reconstruction. In order to generate such data, quantification of the specimen geometry and internal interfaces with nominally 1 nm precision is necessary. Ex-situ monitoring of atom probe specimens has been completed previously in some detail using HRTEM, STEM, tomography, EDS, and EELS [1-3], however, difficulties exist in the transfer of specimens between instruments. In order to solve this, a combined STEM and APT system is currently being engineered and constructed.