Toggle Main Menu Toggle Search

Open Access padlockePrints

Depth profiling organic/inorganic interfaces by argon gas cluster ion beams: sputter yield data for biomaterials, in-vitro diagnostic and implant applications

Lookup NU author(s): Professor Peter Cumpson, Dr Jose Portoles, Dr Anders Barlow, Dr Naoko Sano, Dr Mark Birch

Downloads

Full text for this publication is not currently held within this repository. Alternative links are provided below where available.


Abstract

Argon gas cluster ion beam sources are likely to become much more widely available on XPS and SIMS instruments in the next few years. Much attention has been devoted to their ability to depth profile organic materials with minimum damage. What has not been the focus of attention (possibly because it has been very difficult to measure) is the large ratio of sputter yield for organic materials compared with inorganic materials using these sources and the special opportunities this presents for studies of organic/inorganic interfaces. Traditional depth profiling by monatomic argon ions introduces significant damage into the organic overlayer, and because sputter rates in both organic and inorganic are similar for monatomic ions the interface is often blurred' due to knock-on and other damage mechanisms. We have used a quartz crystal technique to measure the total sputter yield for argon cluster ions in a number of materials important in medical implants, biomaterials and diagnostic devices, including polymethyl methacrylate, collagen, hydroxyapatite, borosilicate glass, soda lime glass, silicon dioxide and the native oxides on titanium and stainless steel. These data fit a simple semi-empirical equation very well, so that the total sputter yield can now be estimated for any of them for the entire range of cluster ion energy typical in XPS or SIMS. On the basis of our total sputter yield measurements, we discuss three useful figures-of-merit' for choosing the optimum cluster ion energy to use in depth profiling organic/inorganic samples. For highest selectivity in removing the organic but not the inorganic material the energy-per-atom in the cluster should be below 6eV. A practical balance between selectivity and reasonably rapid depth profiling is achieved by choosing a cluster ion energy having between around 3 and 9eV energy-per-atom. Copyright (c) 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.


Publication metadata

Author(s): Cumpson PJ; Birch M; Portoles JF; Sano N; Barlow AJ

Publication type: Article

Publication status: Published

Journal: Surface and Interface Analysis

Year: 2013

Volume: 45

Issue: 13

Pages: 1859-1868

Print publication date: 17/10/2013

ISSN (print): 0142-2421

ISSN (electronic): 1096-9918

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Ltd

URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/sia.5333

DOI: 10.1002/sia.5333


Altmetrics

Altmetrics provided by Altmetric


Share