Upgrade of the microprobe at Dresden-Rossendorf

The nuclear microprobe that was in operation until 2104 at the Ion Beam Center of the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf was installed in 1994 [1]. It has been in operation since then with only minor changes. This necessitated an upgrade to bring the setup up to current standards of technology and good working practice. This study presents the details of the upgrade and modernization process we have undertaken.
The major drawbacks of the old system were the poor resolution and low contrast and brightness of the optical microscope. However, a good optical image is essential to localise the areas of interest on, for example, large geological samples.
On the other hand, the main investigative tool is the focused beam of high-energy ions and the corresponding detectors. Any other system such as an optical microscope has to be designed around this equipment. A new custom-designed microscope has been installed for which the first light-collecting lens is mounted in the sample chamber at only a few centimetres from the sample. The light is then guided over large mirrors and focussed on a CCD camera outside the sample chamber. Also the illumination is fed in through the lenses instead of using a separate light source as in the old system. The lens system can also serve as a basis for a possible ionoluminescence detector.
Other improvements concern the beam deflection system, the control of the scanning system and the control and monitoring of all relevant parameters for the experiment. The control of the scanning system is done by custom-designed hardware to guarantee the real-time execution of the scanning without the need for a computer with a real-time operating system. This makes it possible to use a standard Windows based computer with commercial software for the data acquisition. A new channeltron has also been installed to detect secondary electrons that can be used to obtain a quick overview of an measurement area.
Technical details and first test measurements with the new system are presented.

[1] F. Herrmann, D. Grambole, Nucl. Instr. Meth. B 104 (1995) 26.