Focused Ion Beam-Based Specimen Preparation for Atom Probe Tomography

Abstract

Currently, focused ion beams (FIB) are widely used for specimen preparation in atom probe tomography (APT), which is a three-dimensional and atomic-scale compositional analysis tool. Specimen preparation, in which a specif c region of interest is identif ed and a sharp needle shape created, is the first step towards successful APT analysis. The FIB technique is a powerful tool for site-specif c specimen preparation because it provides a lift-out technique and a controllable manipulation function. In this paper, we demonstrate a general procedure containing the crucial points of FIB-based specimen preparation. We introduce aluminum holders with moveable pin and an axial rotation manipulator for specimen handling, which are useful for f ipping and rotating the specimen to present the backside and the perpendicular direction. We also describe specimen preparation methods for nanowires and nanopowders, using a pick-up method and an embedding method by epoxy resin, respectively.