SEM Gas + Heating

The World Leader in Environmental Cell Microscopy

Technical Specs

	1300 Series – SEM
Pressure Range at Sample	10^-6mbar up to 2 bar
Experimental Gas or Vapor Inlets	3 – 8 *
Purge Capability	Yes
Integrated Gas Analysis Capability	Yes
Tubing System	User-replaceable tubing
Biasing Contacts	4 Contacts
Heating Temperature	>1000°C
EELS / EDS Compatible	Yes
SEM Compatibility	Custom integration*

* Contact us for Custom Configurations

Features

Overview

Our in-situ SEM gas cell specimen holder allows researchers to study material behavior in gases and at elevated temperatures (>1000°C), obtaining scanning electron microscope images of gas-solid interactions at real-world reaction temperatures and pressures. Gases are introduced to the microfabricated environmental cell via one of our dedicated gas delivery systems. Cell pressure is fully user-controlled and can be adjusted from high vacuum to above atmospheric pressure. Local specimen heating is provided via an integrated MEMS heater with a temperature sensor calibrated for accurate readings. Now also with custom data/image integration options.

Sample research applications for which realistic reaction conditions can be created in the gas environmental cell are:

Gas catalysis
Fuel-cell research
Growth of nano-structures
Thin film deposition

Edit

How it Works

Hummingbird Scientific’s SEM gas system encloses the sample within a microfabricated gas cell in the holder tip, which is sealed from the microscope chamber environment by a patented sealing mechanism. The gas delivery system and heating controller or electrical biasing electronics are located outside of the chamber. Using Hummingbird’s two-chip gas cell, users can prepare their sample of choice using the same methods they would for any other electron transparent membrane substrate.

Edit

Gas Delivery

Hummingbird Scientific’s gas-flow holder comes with either a single-channel or a multi-channel delivery system.

Single-channel gas delivery system

Hummingbird’s single-channel gas delivery system delivers a single pressure-controlled gas to the environmental cell.

Multi-channel gas delivery system

Hummingbird Scientific’s multi-channel gas delivery system is fully configurable and scalable, designed to deliver multiple pressure-controlled gases to an environmental cell at the same time.

Edit

Heating

Our thin-film heating system for the gas holder discretely heats samples in the gas cell to > 1000ºC. Low-drift, high image stability and long lifetimes > 160 hours make the heating system not only robust, but allows tracking of the area of interest while imaging at high-magnification.

Heating is controlled via a custom-designed control box and software featuring closed-loop temperature control and four-point probe temperature sensing from an on-chip sensor, which is accurate enough to not only measure the sample temperature but to detect power changes small enough to be able to perform nano-calorimetry.

Edit

Hummingbird MEMS Heater Chips for in-situ TEM research

Accessories

Accessories available for your gas-flow holder:

Specialized Gas Cell Chips

Edit

SEM Safety

Careful preparation of your samples and system are essential for effective use of environmental holders. A critical component of any holder system is a high-vacuum leak check station.

Our high-vacuum pumping station is a compact, all-in-one vacuum storage and seal-checking mechanism for SEM specimen holders. The station features short pumping and venting times, and low base pressure (<1e-6 mbar).

Edit