JEOL 6320F

JEOL 6320F

Essentials
Full name	JEOL JSM-6320F
Manufacturer	JEOL, Ltd.
Description	Scanning electron microscope
Location	03.2.213
Manual	A printed copy is in a white binder in a cupboard by the instrument
Responsibility
Primary	Nader

Procedure for imaging

Start the electronics

• Turn on the stage controller box
• Turn on the SEM by flipping the control system power switch in the power supply unit. It's white, on the rear panel.
• The electron emitter is flashed automatically when the SEM is started. You can flash it manually by pressing the ”MANUAL FLASH” button if needed. It should not be flashed more than once a day.

Load the sample

During sample exchange, it's important that the following settings are correct:

• The gate to the electron gun VG7 is closed
• The acceleration voltage is off
• The Working Distance (WD) is on 25
• The fine tuning working Distance (WD) is on 0
• The X-position is 25 mm
• The Y-position is 350 mm
• The tilt angle is 0°

Then, load the sample as follows:

• Put on a pair of nitrile gloves
• Place your sample on the specimen holder
• Fix the specimen holder to the specimen exchange rod and place it on the specimen exchange chamber
• Evacuate the chamber
• Open the GV load lock and plce the specimen holder on the stage
• Retract the rod and close the GV
• Vent the exchange chamber and remove the specimen exchange rod from the SEM
• Adjust the working distance (WD, 8 mm is standard)
• Wait 1-2 minutes until the pressure has dropped to the green area and the diode for L is green.

Adjusting the electron beam

• Turn the gun emission on by pressing the "ON" button ('acceleration voltage' is written above the button)
• Adjust the acceleration voltage to the desired value by turning the knob next to the "ON" button
• Choose a magnification of 25X in the Low Magnification Mode
• Open the gate VG7 to the electron gun.
• Restore the position of the Faraday cup in slot 1 on the joystick pad (if the position is wrong, locate the Faraday cup and store its position in slot 1)
• Switch to the High Resolution Mode
• Focus and increase the magnification to about 20,000X or above, through one of the holes in the copper grid.
• Maximize the beam current by turning the X and Y gun alignment knobs
• Turn back to a lower magnification (about 350X)
• Find a suitable structure to focus on
• Align the aperture by pressing the wobbler button and minimize the motion in both the X and Y directions. Use a magnification of between 10,000X and 20,000X.
• Correct the astigmatism
• Inspect the beam by making a contamination spot and optimize the beam using it
• You are now ready to image your sample

Remove sample

Set the instrument to the following settings:

• Close gate valve VG7 to the electron gun
• Turn the acceleration voltage off
• Set the working distance to 25
• Set the fine tuning working distance to 0 if it has been changed
• Press "EXCHANGE" on the joystick. This sets the X and Y positions to 25 and 350 mm, respectively.
• Set the tilt angle and stage rotation to 0.

Make sure you're wearing gloves, then:

• Place the specimen exchange rod at the specimen exchange chamber opening
• Evacuate the exchange chamber
• Open the isolation valve and attach the rod to the specimen holder
• Retract the rod and close the isolation valve
• Vent the exchange chamber and remove the specimen exchange rod from the SEM
• Unmount the specimen holder from the rod, and place it on the table
• Remove the sample

Turn off the electronics

Turn the brightness, and contrast CRT screens to their lowest levels. If the SEM is booked after you, leave it on. If you are the last user of the day, you must turn it off using the following procedure:

• Make sure that VG7 is closed and the acceleration voltage is off
• Turn off the stage controller box and the camera screen
• Turn the SEM off by flipping the control system power switch in the power supply unit

Warning!

• Do not touch the power key switch on the power supply control unit, when switching the SEM off
• Do not touch the circuit breaker (black switch) in the power supply unit under any circumstances.

General tips

• Always wear gloves when loading and unloading samples
• Turn the illuminator of the camera off when using the backscatter electron detector, as it interferes with its operation
• Always close the gate valve VG7 to the electron gun when you take a break
• When the SEM is turned on, it is flashed automatically and the current will be stable after an hour.
• If you do need to flash:
  • Close the gate valve VG7 to the electron gun and
  • turn the acceleration voltage off

Resources

Prodedure for the JEOL 6230F (1998)

Prodedure for the JEOL 6230F (2014)

Invitation to the SEM world

A guide to scanning microscope observation (JEOL)

Hitachi SEM user guide (2007)