EngD Project Update 1: An Introduction

Throughout this blog I aim to provide updates on the work that I will be undertaking throughout my EngD. I thought I would begin with a brief introduction to my project, beginning with the title: Single Ion Multispecies Positioning at Low Energy (SIMPLE) Quantum Materials Metrology and Development: SIMPLE QMMaD. See, simple.

I am currently working with Ionoptika Ltd. to develop a new tool and imaging capability that will enable the deterministic implantation of single atoms in materials with sub-20nm spatial resolution.
In simpler terms: I will be part of the development of an ion gun that will implant single phosphorus atoms into a silicon substrate, (other combinations of elements will also be used) and we aim to be able to place them within 20nm of our desired target. For those unaware 20nm (nanometers) is around 10,000 times smaller than the width of a human hair. The spacing between silicon atoms in
a lattice is 0.543nm! So we are working at the physical limits, in terms of the precision of our targets. 

A C60 gas cluster ion gun. Whilst the pictured gun greatly differs to the one described, from the outside they look much the same. 

I’ll now delve into how an ion gun creates a beam of ions to ‘fire’ at a substrate. Taking the bottom of the gun to be where the ions end up last before being fired, at the top of the gun you have a reservoir of the element you wish to implant, in this example gallium (which at room temperature is a solid metal). The gallium reservoir will first be heated; this will melt the reservoir which will travel down a fine needle tip where single atoms that have become charged will be extracted from the reservoir by an applied electric field. All this happens in the emitter, which I will explain in more detail in a later post. These extracted ions will then be accelerated along the column of the ion beam by strong electromagnets, which will also act to direct the beam of ions toward the intended target.

I think it all sounds quite simple when you describe the workings of an ion gun as just a heater and some electromagnets, however the reality is much, much more complicated. You might think the development of ion beams and Implantation tools would be modern cutting edge science, but in fact most of the technology of Ion beam systems hasn’t changed much since its development in the 1970s! What makes this project special is that we are pushing the technology to the physical limits. 

I hope you enjoyed this brief introduction. In my next project update I will explain in much more detail the ion emitters.

RDP Thing 1: Experiences with social media

"...we’d like you to write a short piece about your experiences with social media and what you hope to get out of the 23 Things for Research programme."

I am part of the generation whose social media life began with Myspace, first creating my profile around age 12. Myspace was all about crafting your profile to accurately convey your personality; choosing a suitably 'edgy' but aesthetically pleasing theme, and choosing the perfect profile song which would intrusively begin playing every time somebody viewed your profile. 
Maybe though I am applying too much meaning to the phenomenon of Myspace. If you had asked me at age 12 why I used social media the answers wold have likely been the following: "all the other kids are on it" and "I want to chat to girls". If i'm honest those reasons haven't changed much even now...Hopefully the 23 Things Programme can allow me to use my blog and other social media outlets for more productive purposes. I look forward to writing of my EngD work for a public audience. I believe that the act of updating my blog, will allow myself to reflect on the work I have achieved. I also hope that the blog will widen my scientific interest, by encouraging me to read up on other subjects within my field so I can introduce them to the general public.I hope you will all become regular readers. At this age many kids have already begun to separate their interests and identity from that of their parents, crafting out their own personality as they grow to become more self aware. Myspace was one of the many tools and outlets where I could try and build and showcase my personality and style.