INA-X: An Advanced Instrument for Electron-Gas SNMS

Abstract.

 The design and the specifications of a prototype instrument for the electron gas version of secondary neutral mass spectrometry SNMS which will optionally enable measurements with X-ray induced photoelectron spectroscopy XPS, too, are described. By operating the SNMS plasma inside an ultra high vacuum vessel interfering signals from residual gas species are reduced to the level of the mass independent background. The influence of varying angular distributions of sputter-ejected neutrals at low ion energies for sample bombardment can be widely reduced by an oblique take-off for the postionized particles. First examples of SNMS-studies with the new system reveal a detection power well below 1 ppm. Analytically difficult elements as C or O become quantitatively detectable down to a level of several 10 ppm.