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Sputter Cleaning Just Got Easier
[May 27, 2015]

Sputter Cleaning Just Got Easier


BEND, Ore., May 27, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- RBD Instruments Inc., a leading provider of ion sputter cleaning tools to serve the Academic and R&D communities announced an easier way to sputter with a new and improved version of their popular sputter cleaning ion source package, the IG2.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150526/218660  
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150526/218661

If you are not familiar with ion sputter cleaning, Mindy Corley of RBD Instruments describes it this way: "Imagine a cannon that shoots basketballs onto a field of baseballs, with the basketballs being the ions. The basketballs impact the baseballs and the baseballs go flying off the field. Ion sputtering is the same principle."

RBD's IG2 is a favorite at universities and government research facilities such as Sandia National Labs and NIST because, among other reasons, the IG2 may be the lowest priced sputter cleaning ion source package on the orld-wide market today. "Why pay much more than you need to in order to simply sputter clean your sample in a vacuum chamber?" asks Mindy.



A digital panel meter on the front of the IG2 controller now displays the anode current, which makes it easier than ever to set and maintain reproducible ion currents.

Developed for scientists and engineers in analytical labs, universities, research institutions, and government agencies, the IG2 sputter ion source package comprises an ion source (Model 04-165) and a 2 keV ion source controller (Model 32-165). The ion source generates ions with acceleration energies of up to 2 keV. The kinetic energy of the ions erodes the topmost atomic layers of materials in vacuum. Ion sputter cleaning is an essential tool for research and development of new materials.


Another application for the IG2 is the sputter cleaning of STM tips. A scanning tunneling microscope (STM) is an instrument for imaging surfaces at the atomic level. To obtain high quality STM images and spectra, the STM tip needs to be cleaned periodically. RBD's IG2 is an affordable way to clean STM tips in vacuum.

See RBD Instruments sputter ion cleaning solutions at the American Vacuum Society's 62nd International Symposium and Exhibition meeting at the San Jose Convention Center in San Jose, California from October 18 thru October 23, 2015 in booth # 433.

About RBD Instruments

RBD Instruments, Inc., (http://www.rbdinstruments.com/) provides innovative products and services for the surface science and materials science markets. Their solutions encompass the areas of sputter cleaning, water vapor desorption, current measurement products, and surface analysis system parts and repair services.

For further information, please contact:

Mindy Corley, RBD Instruments Inc., 2437 NE Twin Knolls Drive, Bend, Oregon, USA  Tel: 541-330-0723, Fax: 541-330-0991, Email

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/sputter-cleaning-just-got-easier-300089246.html

SOURCE RBD Instruments


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