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Screens versus microarrays for ruggedized retarding potential analyzers.
C L Enloe1, W E Amatucci2, M G McHarg1
1United States Air Force Academy, Colorado 80840, USA.
The Review of Scientific Instruments
|October 3, 2015
Summary
Miniaturized electrostatic lenses offer a robust alternative to traditional meshes in retarding potential analyzers (RPA). This microarray configuration provides accurate particle energy analysis without the energy-dependent transparency issues seen with screens.
Area of Science:
- Physics
- Particle Accelerators
- Instrumentation
Background:
- Retarding Potential Analyzers (RPA) traditionally use meshes or screens for particle energy analysis.
- These components can suffer from energy-dependent transparency, affecting data accuracy.
- Mechanical ruggedness and the ability to handle large energetic particle currents are often desired in RPAs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate a novel microarray configuration of electrostatic lenses as a replacement for traditional meshes in RPAs.
- To assess the performance of this new configuration in terms of energy analysis accuracy and transparency.
- To compare the microarray configuration with a ruggedized screen-based RPA.
Main Methods:
- Development and testing of a prototype RPA utilizing an array of miniaturized electrostatic lenses (microarray configuration).
- Cross-calibration of the prototype device with a traditional planar RPA.
- Presentation and analysis of data comparing the microarray configuration with a ruggedized screen configuration.
- Numerical simulations to verify observed phenomena in the screen configuration.
Main Results:
- The microarray configuration of electrostatic lenses successfully replaces traditional meshes in RPAs.
- This configuration avoids the energy-dependent transparency (reduced or enhanced) characteristic of meshes.
- Accurate energy analysis with reasonable energy resolution was achieved using the microarray configuration.
- A ruggedized screen configuration exhibited significant energy-dependent enhanced transparency, confirmed by simulation.
Conclusions:
- Highly miniaturized electrostatic lenses present a viable and superior alternative to meshes/screens in RPAs, especially when ruggedness or high current handling is needed.
- The microarray configuration offers improved accuracy in energy analysis by eliminating energy-dependent transparency.
- Traditional ruggedized screens can introduce significant, simulation-verified, transparency artifacts.
