An Automated Site-Specific Tip Preparation Method for Atom Probe Tomography Using Script-Controlled Focused Ion Beam/Scanning Electron Microscopy

The automatization of the atom probe tomography (APT) tip preparation using a focused ion beam (FIB) with a scanning electron microscopy (SEM) dual-beam system will certainly contribute to systematic APT research with higher throughput and reliability. While our previous work established a method to prepare tips with a specified tip curvature and taper angle automatically by using script-controlled FIB/SEM, the technique has been expanded to automated “site-specific” tip preparation in the current work. The improved procedure can automatically detect not only the tip shape but also the interface position in the tip, thus, the new function allows for control of the tip apex position, in other words, automated “site-specific” tip preparations are possible. The details of the automation procedure and some experimental demonstrations, i.e., Pt cap on Si, InGaN-based MQWs, and p-n junction of GaAs, are presented.