SEDL / STP / STP949-EB / STP19437S

Fourier Transform Infrared Microspectrophotometry as a Failure Analysis Tool

Shearer, JC
President, J. Shearer Consulting, Inc., Hamlin, NY

Peters, DC
Technical services manager, Analect Instruments, Utica, NY

Pages: 12    Published: Jan 1987

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Abstract

Recent enhancements to Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) microsampling accessories allow sampling sizes to become vanishingly small. Using a high throughput FT-IR spectrophotometer equipped with an infrared microspectrometer accessory, we can now routinely measure specimens smaller than 10 µm in size.

With such a device, specimen presentations to the infrared (IR) beam is greatly simplified over microbeam/fixed aperture accessories. Little or no specimen preparation is required. The chemist simply places his small specimen on a small potassium bromide (KBr) window, which acts as a substrate. He then locates the region of interest in the specimen, apertures down, and analyzes the exact region in the IR as was viewed in the visible.

This paper presents recent applications of the fXA-515 FT-IR microscope accessory to industrial problems. This accessory, attached to an fX-6260 FT-IR system, was used to analyze contaminate on floppy and hard disk media. Other applications to be discussed include the analysis of defects in epoxy matrices and polarization studies of fibers.