When Nano-Needles Break: Investigating Failure Mechanisms in Atom Probe Tomography

Imec; Vlaams-Brabant; Vor Ort; EUR 8.900 - 11.000; Vollzeit

Zusammenfassung

imec invites Master or PhD students to join the Atom Probe Tomography (APT) group in Belgium for a 12-month internship focused on understanding mechanical failure of APT needles under high electric fields and laser pulses. You will explore root causes and propose mitigation strategies using state-of-the-art equipment and interdisciplinary methods.

The project may include experimental APT work, correlative microscopy, or data-mining approaches, with supervision by Jeroen Scheerder.

Qualifikationen

• Background in materials science and engineering or physics with emphasis on solid state physics.
• Experience or exposure to experimental characterization methods is beneficial.
• Involvement in undergraduate/graduate research projects is advantageous.

Aufgaben

• Identify root causes of mechanical failure in APT specimen during measurements.
• Propose and assess mitigation strategies for failure under high-field and cryogenic conditions.
• Conduct experiments and data analysis, potentially with correlative microscopy or data mining.

Kenntnisse

Materials science

Solid state physics

Experimental work

Ausbildung

Physics

Materials Engineering

Mechanical Engineering

Tools

Atom Probe Tomography (APT)

Jobbeschreibung

/ When Nano-Needles Break: Investigating Failure Mechanisms in Atom Probe Tomography

When Nano-Needles Break: Investigating Failure Mechanisms in Atom Probe Tomography

Exposed to extreme electric fields, laser pulses, and cryogenic temperatures, APT specimens operate at the edge of stability. What causes them to fail, and how can we prevent it?

At imec, we are in the unique position to develop materialscharacterization solutions for the future generation semiconductortechnologies. Often overlooked, this is a crucial component in achieving theambitious goals depicted on our roadmap [1,2].

Atom Probe Tomography (APT) is an exciting 3-dimensional materialscharacterization technique that has recently appeared on the semiconductorlandscape [3]. This state-of-the-art method is very valuable to reveal for exampledopant distributions in a gate-all-around nanosheet transistor, localcomposition fluctuations in a SiGe spin qubit, interface diffusion in amagnetic random access memory device, etc. However, when being applied tosemiconductor devices, APT is still a very novel characterization method, withmany opportunities for impactful research and development aspects around theunderlying physical mechanisms, automation approaches, 3D data reconstruction protocols,statistical data analysis schemes and many more.

In this project, you will tackle the challenge of mechanical failure of specimenduring Atom Probe analysis. For APT, specimen are prepared into a micrometerlong needle with an endpoint radius of less than 50 nm. During APT dataacquisition, this needle is being held at cryogenic temperatures while beingexposed to a standing voltage of ~10 kV coupled with ultra-short (ps) laserpulses at ~200 kHz frequency. These conditions induce cyclic mechanical andthermal stresses, which in some material systems lead to premature fracture of the needle before any data can be recorded. You shall identify the root-causesfor these failures and propose innovative solutions to mitigate them for awell-defined set of material systems. This work will benefit from a strongmultidisciplinary and out-of-the-box mindset, as it touches on aspects ofhigh-field physics, material science, mechanical properties of materials,interface physics, etc.

This internship is embedded in the Atom Probe Tomography (APT) researchgroup at imec. Depending on the state of the ongoing research and thebackground and interests of the candidate, the project may focus on APTexperimental work, correlative studies combining APT with advanced complementarycharacterization such as transmission electron microscopy or micromechanicaltesting, or data-mining approaches aimed at uncovering previously hiddencorrelations governing APT specimen yield. The access to state-of-the-artequipment and material systems of varying complexity will enable you to study therelationship between material properties (microstructure, defectivity,interface properties), specimen preparation strategies, experimentalconditions, and failure mechanisms.

Ultimately, the aim is to broaden the application range of APT, allowingus to better leverage the strength of this 3D characterization method. Speedingup our learning cycles will be beneficial for the development of the nextgeneration devices and the achievement of the ambitious goals of thesemiconductor industry.

Required background : Materials science and engineering, Physicswith a strong focus on solid state physics

Type of internship: Master internship, PhD internship

Duration: 12 months

Required educational background: Physics, Materials Engineering, Mechanical Engineering

Supervising scientist(s): For further information or for application, please contact Jeroen Scheerder ( [e-mail] )

The reference code for this position is 2026-INT-335. Mention this reference code in your application.

Only for self-supporting students.

At imec, we are in the unique position to develop materialscharacterization solutions for the future generation semiconductortechnologies. Often overlooked, this is a crucial component in achieving theambitious goals depicted on our roadmap [1,2].

Atom Probe Tomography (APT) is an exciting 3-dimensional materialscharacterization technique that has recently appeared on the semiconductorlandscape [3]. This state-of-the-art method is very valuable to reveal for exampledopant distributions in a gate-all-around nanosheet transistor, localcomposition fluctuations in a SiGe spin qubit, interface diffusion in amagnetic random access memory device, etc. However, when being applied tosemiconductor devices, APT is still a very novel characterization method, withmany opportunities for impactful research and development aspects around theunderlying physical mechanisms, automation approaches, 3D data reconstruction protocols,statistical data analysis schemes and many more.

In this project, you will tackle the challenge of mechanical failure of specimenduring Atom Probe analysis. For APT, specimen are prepared into a micrometerlong needle with an endpoint radius of less than 50 nm. During APT dataacquisition, this needle is being held at cryogenic temperatures while beingexposed to a standing voltage of ~10 kV coupled with ultra-short (ps) laserpulses at ~200 kHz frequency. These conditions induce cyclic mechanical andthermal stresses, which in some material systems lead to premature fracture ofthe needle before any data can be recorded. You shall identify the root-causesfor these failures and propose innovative solutions to mitigate them for awell-defined set of material systems. This work will benefit from a strongmultidisciplinary and out-of-the-box mindset, as it touches on aspects ofhigh-field physics, material science, mechanical properties of materials,interface physics, etc.

This internship is embedded in the Atom Probe Tomography (APT) researchgroup at imec. Depending on the state of the ongoing research and thebackground and interests of the candidate, the project may focus on APTexperimental work, correlative studies combining APT with advanced complementarycharacterization such as transmission electron microscopy or micromechanicaltesting, or data-mining approaches aimed at uncovering previously hiddencorrelations governing APT specimen yield. The access to state-of-the-artequipment and material systems of varying complexity will enable you to study therelationship between material properties (microstructure, defectivity,interface properties), specimen preparation strategies, experimentalconditions, and failure mechanisms.

Ultimately, the aim is to broaden the application range of APT, allowingus to better leverage the strength of this 3D characterization method. Speedingup our learning cycles will be beneficial for the development of the nextgeneration devices and the achievement of the ambitious goals of thesemiconductor industry.

[1] https://www.imec-int.com/en/articles/20-year-roadmap-tearing-down-walls

[2] MaryA. Breton, et al., J. Micro/Nanopattern. Mats. Metro. 21(2) 021206 (2022)

[3] B. Gault,Nature Reviews Methods Primers volume 1, 51 (2021)

Required background : Materials science and engineering, Physicswith a strong focus on solid state physics

Type of internship: Master internship, PhD internship

Duration: 12 months

Required educational background: Physics, Materials Engineering, Mechanical Engineering

University promotor: Claudia Fleischmann (KU Leuven)

Supervising scientist(s): For further information or for application, please contact Jeroen Scheerder ( [e-mail] )

The reference code for this position is 2026-INT-335. Mention this reference code in your application.

Only for self-supporting students.