Ion chromatography system for conducting an environmental analysis in semiconductor equipment

摘要

An ion chromatography system analyzes the environment in semiconductor equipment for foreign materials. The system includes an impinger section for preparing a sample of the atmosphere, and an ion chromatography section. The impinger section includes an absorbent solution vessel, suction and exhaust piping connecting the vessel to the environment, and a pump for transporting atmosphere under pressure. The ion chromatography section includes a guard column, a separation column, and a detector. The suction pipe has an intake port positioned at a target site whose environment is to be analyzed. The impinger section is connected to the ion chromatography section so that the absorbent solution of the vessel directly enters the ion chromatography section. To promote the absorption of the atmosphere into the solution, the absorbent solution vessel may be in the form of an elongate diffusion scrubber having an outer cylindrical vessel and an inner tube made of a selective membrane. Alternatively, the vessel may incorporate a porous plate connected at the end of the suction pipe to break the sample of atmosphere into a plurality of gas bubbles.