The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 03, 2005
Filed:
May. 30, 2003
Armin Heinz Hayn, Saffron Walden, GB;
Armin Heinz Hayn, Saffron Walden, GB;
Leo Electron Microscopy Limited, Cambridge, GB;
Abstract
A signal detector for detecting electrically charged particles in a gaseous medium has an electrode having a tip region for gathering charged particles. The electrode is connected to a voltage source for applying a voltage that generates electro-static field for attracting the particles to the electrode, and at least part of the tip region has a radius of curvature which is sufficiently small or (in the case of a point tip or sharp edge) infinitesimally small so as to create a localised high intensity electro-static field which defines a detection zone in which, in use, charge particles are accelerated by the electric field so as to ionise gas molecules in the zone and thus amplify the signal to be received by the detector. The received signal is supplied through an output of the detector. The detector may be provided in a sample chamber of a scanning electron microscope.