UKSAF meeting, University of Surrey, 2 – 3 July 2024
At the beginning of July, our Company Scientist, Dr David Stupple, attended the UKSAF (UK Surface Analysis Forum) meeting at his alma mater, University of Surrey in Guildford. Surface analysis encompasses a variety of different techniques such as Auger spectroscopy, AFM (atomic force microscopy), ToFSIMS (time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry) and – most relevant to Torr – XPS (X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy). Surrey has a thriving surface analysis laboratory that offers these four techniques and has a proud history in the field, as outlined in the introductory addresses. The theme of the meeting was The Legacy of 50 Years of Surface Analysis.
Dr Dave attended most of the talks and gave a brief vendor talk on the design, manufacture and refurbishment of X-ray anodes for XPS and other techniques. TSL routinely fabricates and coats X‑ray anodes for OEM equipment manufacturers for X-ray inspection, surface analysis and crystallography. Coatings include tungsten, aluminium, magnesium and chromium. Tungsten tends to be for inspection equipment, aluminium and magnesium for XPS and chromium for HAXPES (hard X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy). HAXPES is like XPS but uses more energetic X‑ray photons for a deeper analysis depth and extended analytical possibilities.
Topics covered by the talks included HAXPES (by Prof. John Watts), a novel femtosecond laser ablation technique for XPS depth profiling (by Dr Mark Baker) and timber preservation for the wreck of the Mary Rose, Henry VIII’s 514‑year-old flagship (by Dr Marie-Laure Abel).
Exhibition Report 18 – 20th June 2024
EVC-17 & ECOSS-37 – Harrogate, UK
Organized by the IOP (Institute of Physics), this joint European conference bought together delegates attending the 17th European vacuum congress (EVC-17) & the 37th European Conference on surface science (ECOSS-37).
The venue also held the 13th Vacuum Symposium UK (VS-13) and an RGA user meeting at the same time.
The delegates covered the following topics:
- Applied Surface Science
- Biointerfaces
- Electronic Materials and Processing
- Nanometre Structures
- Plasma Science and Technologies
- Surface Engineering
- Surface Science
- Thin Films
- Vacuum Science and Technology
Torr Scientific had an exhibition stand at the event and brought a variety of products to showcase the wide range of manufacturing expertise at the company. These products included vacuum windows in a variety of optical materials, some with anti-reflective (AR) coatings, several glass quantum cells, again with & without AR coatings, X-ray anodes, gold-and-silver coated bio-sensors, examples of vacuum-brazed products, custom window fabrications, and much more.
The exhibition venue was huge in comparison to other events we’ve attended in the past, so the exhibitors were thinly spread around the place, some might say too thinly spread.
Typically for an event like this, the venue was busy at coffee breaks and lunchtimes, and much quieter in-between. Beer and wine were served at the end of the day before the poster sessions started, this more relaxed atmosphere prompted discussions between delegates and the exhibitors.
