2024 Volume 22 Issue 1 Pages 58-73
This paper describes a new version of the mass filtered ion gauge (MFIG) sensor [D. Maas et al., Proc. SPIE 10145, 101452I (2017)]. By changing the entire design of the sensor its sensitivity could be improved, its mass filter function could be improved and last but not least its electronics was made far more robust. MFIG (shown in Graphical Abstract) is a metrology tool for detecting low levels of contamination (volatile organic compounds) with a high time resolution. As such it detects bursts, but also transients and continuous contamination in high vacuum systems. The high time resolution for an extended mass range discriminates this sensor from a residual gas analyzer (RGA). MFIG is also more sensitive than a state-of-the-art RGA as a result you can also detect contamination earlier. As such the MFIG sensor can be used as a traffic light and it can alert the system or operator in an early state when the system is out-of-spec. With these two unique characteristics the MFIG can prevent additional contamination to the system or additional yield loss. The development of this sensor was done within the European program MadeIn4. The development started with a use case and requirement analysis. The design process was supported by COMSOLTM modeling. After realization of MFIG sensor it was evaluated in a laboratory environment in which we could insert controlled gas mixture into a high vacuum system. In this paper we will show that MFIG is both more sensitive and faster than a state-of-the-art RGA in detecting contaminations.
