An Introduction to Ion Beam Milling (IBM)

 Ion beam milling produces a sample which is thin, smooth, and free of surface debris. The technique is suitable whenever a high-resolution cross-sectional image is desired.

• Polymerics
• Ceramics
• Metals
• Geological specimens

What are the components of an Ion Beam Mill?

A basic Ion Beam Mill system consists of a vacuum chamber, an ion beam source, an ion gun and a sample stage (or substrate holder).

To properly control the ion bombardment of the sample, it is necessary that the ion beam has an unobstructed path to the surface of the sample to be milled. This is achieved by processing the sample in a medium to high vacuum chamber (10^-4 to 10^-6 Torr). The ion source produces an ion beam and the ion gun directs the beam towards the sample material, which is mounted on the substrate holder.

More complex systems have advanced features such as multiple ion sources providing a wide operating power range, sample thickness monitoring, sample cooling and automated sample loading.

Ion Beam Mill instruments

Various IBM instruments are available with optimised features depending on the user requirements

• UniMill
  • Combines an ultra-high energy ion gas source for rapid milling with a low energy ion gun for polishing, cleaning, and thinning for TEM/XTEM

• Gentle Mill
  • A gentle low power ion gun for high quality, precision final polishing of pre-prepared samples for TEM and FIB

• SEMPrep2
  • a multi-functional instrument for slope cutting and surface polishing to prepare samples for SEM and EBSD.

Discover More About Ion Beam Mills

Please call us on  +44 (0) 161 442 9963, email enquiries@scimed.co.uk or complete our online enquiry form.