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Some typical applications for SIMS that the laboratory has used the instrument for are listed below:

Typical Applications

• Routine metal component batch release - protection against surface contamination / alloying element surface segregation in a furnace heat treatment process.
• Checks for weak boundary/ surface segregation organic layers affecting paint or adhesive adhesion.
• Improvement of chemical cleaning or etching processes.
• Drying stain root cause investigations.
• Localised chemical contaminant analysis and identification.
• Metallic component emissivity process rejects due to ineffective thermal blackening.
• Sputtered layer process characterisation and checks of target end of life.
• Surface segregation of heater coating contaminants.
• Corrosion failures due to electrochemical action looking for corrosive species and reaction products in combination with SEM
• Investigation of product and in-service corrosion failures and identification of chemicals which could promote it.
• Use of tracer elemental isotopes.
• Analysis of metal coated glass to determine phthalate and cleaning chemical surface contamination distributions.
• Contamination of PCB electrical contacts determination of source.
• Root cause investigations delamination of printed layers in security materials

Our site expert on SIMS is Dr Stephen Jenkins.
 

Document Title	View
Aqueous degreasing replacement of solvent based cleaning processes for environmental reasons - SIMS reveals the pitfalls.
Sputter problem solving and target end of life determination by SIMS.
Metal component thermal blackening process failure solved by SIMS
Determination of Surface Tension and Wettability of Liquid on Solid Surfaces