Ion microscopy based on laser-cooled cesium atoms

We demonstrate a prototype of a Focused Ion Beam machine based on the ionization of a laser-cooled cesium beam and adapted for imaging and modifying different surfaces in the few-tens nanometer range. Efficient atomic ionization is obtained by laser promoting ground-state atoms into a target excited Rydberg state, then field-ionizing them in an electric field gradient. The method allows obtaining ion currents up to 130 pA. Comparison with the standard direct photo-ionization of the atomic beam shows, in our conditions, a 40-times larger ion yield. Preliminary imaging results at ion energies in the 1–5 keV range are obtained with a resolution around 40 nm, in the present version of the prototype. Our ion beam is expected to be extremely monochromatic, with an energy spread of the order of the eV, offering great prospects for lithography, imaging and surface analysis.