[labnetwork] Experience with cart-mounted RGA systems?

[John Shott]

Hello Labnetwork Community:

We are exploring options for portable Residual Gas Analyzer (RGA) 
systems that are sufficiently flexible and portable to be used on a 
variety of process tools.  In particular, we would like to be able to 
use them on systems such as ALD, etch, and PECVD tools that are 
typically comparatively low-vacuum systems often  pumped with only a dry 
mechanical pump.  I trust that means that we need a system with it's own 
on-board turbo and an appropriate inlet manifold to provide sufficiently 
high vacuum for the RGA.

If you have experience with such a system, I'd appreciate learning more 
about whether your system is a useful diagnostic tool on a variety of 
systems, whether it is reasonably robust, easy to use, etc.  Also, most 
RGAs typically offer the ability to measure masses up to 100 AMU with 
often the option to measure up to 200 or 300 AMU.  For general vacuum 
"finger printing" is there added value in being able to measure higher 
than 100 AMU?  If you've tried this approach and found that it did not 
deliver the information that you hoped to learn, I'd be interested in 
that experience as well.  Are there other approaches to tracking the 
health of vacuum chambers that we should be investigating?

Thanks for your consideration,

John
Stanford Nanofabrication Facility