Black Screen
- Click EXIT in the work window. Keep selecting EXIT until the log-in screen appears.
- Click EXIT again.
- In the command screen, type FIB (shown at the bottom). Hit Enter.
- The password is: FIB111
- Click NEXT. You want the work manager and auto stage.
- Look for the login information for the instrument on the white board.
Restoring the Vacuum
This might happen during specimen exchange. If this is the first time you have encountered vacuum loss during specimen exchange, please contact ACMAL staff.
- S.C and S.E.C vacuum lights will be red. Make sure the SEC door (MV-1) is closed and the specimen exchange rod is inserted.
- Flip the switch from S.E.C to S.C. Push EVAC.
- Open the MV1 chamber lock and watch the S.C./S.E.C. gauge. Wait.
- When the S.E.C. light changes to green, close the MV1 chamber lock and flip the S.C. switch back to S.E.C.
- Eventually, the S.C. light will change to green. Wait to use the FIB until the S.C. penning gauge reads less than 10-2 Pa.
NOTE: When the switch is flipped to S.E.C. and you push AIR, if the S.C. vacuum goes to AIR also, there is a seal leak on the specimen holder O-ring. You cannot repair this and will need to contact staff if this happens.
Reforming/Flashing the Tip
Occasionally, the beam will become unstable as witnessed by either a warning message (#4061), an irregularly shaped line profile in the EM window, or black lines in the image window.
- Select the LMIS tab. In the control window, select Flashing. The Temperature and Time should be 1024 and 10, respectively.
- To adjust the voltage back down to 3.2-3.4 μA, in the LMIS window, slide the Vext slider to 0 kV. Hit Calibrate. Then, slide the bar back to the point where Iext = 3.2 μA. (On 4/4/2011 Vext = 8.10 kV when Iext = 3.2 μA.) NOTE: It is not uncommon for the Iext and Vext values to differ in the EM and LMIS windows. The EM window lags in the update; the values should steady after about 5 minutes.
- If instability persists, select LMIS > Reforming, and repeat step 2.