Improving Analysis
Joint Research Activities
Improving performance of analytical techniques is a keystone of future progress in Ion Beam Analysis (IBA). This work package will be led by ETHZ because of their experience in detector development and instrumentation. They also lead the key task, which is directed towards development of new and novel detector designs in combination with appropriate new and improved software tools. Another key task brings together, under the leadership of UPMC, groups with a proven track record in ion beam damage. They will provide documented procedures and techniques to minimise beam damage for sensitive samples, so that best practice can be shared across the TNA providers.
Key task: Detector Development
This KT aims to: improve novel and promising detection techniques; turn prototypes into practical instrumentation; and disseminate know-how of high performance detector developments among the infrastructures. This will be accomplished by focussing on two primary directions. In parallel, concerted efforts to further improve existing software packages and to establish new codes capable to digest large amounts of data generated from new detection systems are planned.
Position-sensitive and large solid angle detectors
Position sensitive detectors are key components in magnetic and electrostatic spectrographs. Several research groups (HZDR, KUL, UBW, ITN and RBI) have implemented such detection systems and are improving their performance or have new systems under development. UBW is improving detection efficiency and accuracy of high resolution Elastic Recoil Detection (ERD) by the implementation of a new set of Si-pixel detectors. 128 Si-PIN diodes will be installed at the UBW Q3D spectrograph for the measurement of residual energy in a position sensitive ΔE-E setup with a ns-resolved timing signal. This allows simultaneous particle identification and correction of kinematic shifts in the high-resolution energy analysis necessary for optimized depth resolution.
Novel detectors and new detector materials
- ETHZ will advance high-resolution gas ionization detectors and make detectors and detector technology available to the partners of the consortium
- CEA will build a low temperature bolometer detector for high-resolution energy loss analysis of low energetic ions
- RBI will test new types of radiation hard detectors (diamond and SiC) by the Ion Beam Induced Charge (IBIC) technique to assess the use of these detectors for energy spectroscopy.
Advanced Software Capabilities
The new experimental opportunities require
substantial improvements in physical
models and their implementation in
IBA software. In some cases, no appropriate
codes are yet available. This implies
the creation of much new knowledge,
which is the main deliverable of this task,
via wide dissemination through code developers
and users.
A strategy to improve or create new software
will be defined to assure maximum
benefit to the consortium and the wider
IBA community (ITN, SUR). This requires
that the software modules can be used
in a fast and efficient way, are well documented
and appropriately tested for correctness
and usability. The software produced
in this work package will, as much
as possible, be open source and will be
made freely available as software modules.
By establishing and using standardized
input/output data formats this KT will
ensure the widespread availability of developed
codes for users around Europe.
We have developed a new IBA data format, called IDF, that aspires to support all forms of IBA data in a well defined simple format. The IDF is based on XML. A stable version 1 of the IDF definition schema is given in http://idf.schemas.itn.pt, together with an IDF documentation, and some examples of IDF files corresponding to calculations of the IAEA intercomparison of IBA software exercise.
Key task: Reduction of Analysing Beam Effects
The incident particle beam used in analysis can modify the sample’s crystalline and mechanical structure, its chemical composition and its elemental composition profiles. These effects are exacerbated under finely focussed micro- or nano-beams (SUR) which deliver extremely high beam current densities; high energy or heavy ions (UBW, HZDR, ETHZ, KUL), which deposit very high local energy densities; and in-situ studies which require many consecutive measurements on a single sample (KUL). They are of major concern in analysis of sensitive single crystals (KUL, UPMC, ITN), polymers (UPMC), low-k materials (KUL), and biological materials such as single cells (SUR, CNRS).
This key task will address the reduction of beam damage during IBA towards identification and dissemination of optimal practice to minimise beam damage for both routine and novel IBA methods.
