Microscopy, Surface and Elemental Analysis

Probe Scanning Microscopy

Microscopy and Surface Analysis
It consists mainly of Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM) and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM).
STM works by scanning a metal tip on the surface. By bringing the metal tip very close to the surface, and applying an electrical voltage to either the tip or the sample, an image of the surface can be obtained on an extremely small scale.

Optical and Digital Microscopesscopy

Microscopy and Surface Analysis

The Microscope is design to work on the analysis of superficial evaluation at micrometric scale to determine production failures, placement errors, corroborate the quality of the product or simply understand what the surface structure of a part or sample is like. Additionally, they allow us to get information about curvature, diameters, pore size, grain size, incrustations and 3D reconstruction, and they also comply with national and international standards for the most rigorous quality control processes.

CMM Systems

Microscopy and Surface Analysis

The CMM systems are designed for verification and inspection of finished parts in production lines for various applications. With this systems we can carry out evaluations of diameters, roundness, production specifications, know the uncertainty of our parts and processes, but above all, always maintain 100% quality. These machines work both with probes that make direct contact with the parts and with optical sensors that allow us to double check any measurement.

Surface Analysis

Microscopy and Surface Analysis
X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), Time of Flight - Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (TOF SIMS) and Low Energy Ion Scattering (LEIS).
XPS is when an atom or molecule absorbs an X-ray photon and an electron is ejected. The kinetic energy (KE) of the electron depends on the energy of the photon (hv) and the bond energy (BE) of the electron. By measuring the kinetic energy of the emitted electrons, it is possible to determine which elements are near the surface, their chemical states and the bonding energy of the electron.
In a TOF-SIMS analysis, a solid surface is bombarded by primary ions of some energy keV. The energy of the primary ion is transferred to atoms of interest via atomic collisions and a collision cascade is generated. The interaction of the collision cascade with the surface molecules is smooth enough to allow even large, non-volatile molecules with masses up to 10,000µ to escape with little or no fragmentation.
In a LEIS analysis the sample surface is bombarded with noble gas ions and an energy of some keV. The ions are dispersed by the surface atoms according to the laws of conservation of energy and momentum. By measuring the energy of the backscattered ions, the mass of the scattered surface atoms is determined

Electronic Microscopy

Microscopy and Surface Analysis
This technique is based on the interaction of electrons with matter and how to obtain both structural and defect characterization information.
In Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), low energy (less than 50 eV) secondary electrons are emitted from the sample surface and can be used to give a type of image.

Portable X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF)

Microscopy, Surface and Elemental Analysis

Energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) is the best choice for different applications such as Non-Destructive Testing, Positive Material Identification, Geochemistry, Scrap and many more. The miniaturization of the technology allows it to offer high quality instruments and with the ease of using it anywhere due to its compact size and low weight.

Portable Laser Induced Plasma Spectroscopy (LIBS)

Microscopy, Surface and Elemental Analysis

Laser Induced Plasma Spectroscopy is the technological revolution for elemental analysis. Similar to Optical Emission Spectroscopy, LIBS instead uses a high-powered laser to produce a plasma, technology that has allowed the technique to be miniaturized to handheld equipment and with the versatility of using Argon purge for precise analysis of light elements such as Coal.