Storing Matter: A new analytical technique developed to improve the sensitivity and the quantification during SIMS analyses

摘要

Storing Matter is a new analytical technique for organic and inorganic materials, which has been developed to avoid the SIMS matrix effect while keeping or even improving the excellent sensitivity of SIMS. The technique consists in separating the sputtering of the sample to be analyzed from the subsequent analysis step by SIMS. During the sputtering process the molecules and atoms emitted under ion bombardment of the sample are deposited in a monolayer regime on a well known collector surface. Enhanced secondary ion emission can be obtained during the subsequent SIMS analysis as the chemical nature of the surface can be selected with respect to the element to be analyzed and the different SIMS analysis modes (M~+, M~-, cationization for organic information, etc.). Depositing the matter emitted from different layers or from different samples on the same collector surface makes Storing Matter a powerful tool not only to circumvent the SIMS matrix effect, but also to improve the excellent sensitivity of the SIMS technique. A prototype instrument has been developed to perform the different steps of the Storing Matter technique under optimized conditions. The aim of this work is to present the analytical performance obtained with the Storing Matter technique for six collector materials (Ta, Ag, Al, Au, Ni and Pt) for two different elements and analysis modes (In in positive mode and Au in negative mode).