MPRL Facilities
Surface Analysis Facilities
State-of-the-art surface analysis facilities are available at Georgia Tech's Microelectronics Research Center. Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS) apparatus is used for sensitive determination of atomic composition variation with depth and position in a specimen. Depth resolutions of 10 nm are typical and elemental sensitivities of 1014 cm-3 are achieved in many cases. Elemental distribution can be mapped with a 3-micron lateral spatial resolution. The Microelectronics Research Center also has state-of-the-art equipment for conducting Scanning Auger Microscopy (SAM), Electron Spectroscopy for Chemical Analysis (ESCA), angle resolved Auger spectroscopy and Ultraviolet Photoelectron Microscopy (UPS). These techniques allow researchers to obtain elemental and chemical composition data from the outer few atomic layers of most solids. In combination with inert gas ion sputtering they also provide information on composition as a function of depth beneath the surface.