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Sample Handling in the Atmospheric Processing Platform

This page provides details on sample handling in the Atmospheric Processing platform.

Photo of the large circular metal top of the cluster tool. Two wires cross the top and are attached to connectors on a flange at the center of the top. The chamber is surrounded by several other tools, but several of the cluster tool ports are open for future expansion.

The robotic cluster tool portion of the Atmospheric Processing platform.

Central Robot

The vacuum (<10-6 torr) robot on the Atmospheric Processing platform allows vacuum transport of the standard platen between tools without contamination by outside air. The computer-controlled robot transfers samples to and from the transport pod, the vacuum sputtering chamber, the thermal evaporator, and the glove box tools. Four ports are available for collaborator tools.

Glove Box

The glove box allows air-sensitive evaporator sources to be loaded.

Transport Pod

The pod facilitates inter-tool sample transfer, moving samples from the Atmospheric Processing platform to other tools in the Process Development and Integration Laboratory, or vice versa.

Photo of long box-like chamber attached below a series of glove boxes and within a metal support framework. A window along the entire length of one side of the chamber reveals the mechanism for moving samples between glove boxes.

The linear motion transport system used to move samples between glove boxes within the Atmospheric Processing platform.

Linear-Motion Transport System

The linear-motion transport system is located below the glove boxes. A door located in the bottom of each glove box facilitates loading and unloading the transport system shuttle. Once the substrates are on the shuttle mechanism, samples can be moved to other glove boxes in an inert atmosphere.

Contact Maikel van Hest for more details on these capabilities.