What's New at XEI Scientific, Inc. ?

February 2012: XEI Scientific, Inc. reveals new technology, expands U.S. sales staff, and will attend 2 Trade Shows this month:

Upcoming Events: Visit us this month at the SPIE Advanced Lithography show in San Jose, CA from February 12-16,  and the AVS (NCCAVS) Meeting in San Jose on February 22nd. For full details on these and other shows that XEI will attend, please visit our Shows page.

XEI Creates Solution for Cleaning Larger Chambers at Lower Pressure

Dr. Gabe Morgan, XEI’s Application Scientist, will present a poster at SPIE Advanced Lithography on new developments using downstream plasma cleaning technology to clean larger chambers at lower pressures and higher RF plasma power (50W), operating efficiently with current turbomolecular pumps.  Cleaning rates have been measured at over 1 nm/minute at a distance of over 0.5 m from the plasma source.  Cleaning has also been seen at a distance over 1 m from the plasma cleaner. Although the new cleaner will be slightly larger than the current Evactron^® De-Contaminator™, it still has a compact footprint and will be easily installed on lithography tools.

XEI Welcomes New U.S. Sales Manager, Dan Kleinen:

XEI Scientific is very pleased to announce that as a result of our substantial growth over the past year,  Mr. Dan Kleinen has joined the team to focus on our North American business.  Dan brings a wealth of experience in sales and marketing of technology products and will be supporting the existing XEI sales agents working in the US as well as our North American customers.

January 2012: XEI Scientific, Inc. looks forward to serving you in a strong 2012. Message from the Sales Desk:

December completed an absolutely fabulous year for the Evactron ^® team with XEI booking nearly 200 more systems in 2011.  The introduction of both the Evactron^® SoftClean™ System and the Evactron^® CombiClean™ System now give users the ability to easily clean samples and parts destined for use inside the chamber as well as providing our proven downstream plasma cleaning process for the chambers themselves.

Look for more innovation in 2012 as we complete the work on the Evactron^® TEM Wand.  Having worked with both Hitachi and JEOL systems late in 2011, we are now nearing full product release for current generation TEMs for both of these manufacturers.  And this is not all, as we will continue to bring the most efficient plasma cleaning products and processes to both our existing customers and new users of vacuum systems in markets outside of traditional electron microscopy.  Stay tuned for continuing news or contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with any questions about your decontamination needs.

Thanks to all who contributed to our success in 2011 and the best wishes for a great 2012!

Upcoming Events: Visit us next month at the SPIE Advanced Lithography show in San Jose, CA from February 12-16,  and the AVS (NCCAVS) Meeting in San Jose on February 22nd. For full details on these and other shows that XEI will attend, please visit our Shows page.

December 2011: XEI Scientific, Inc. is wrapping up the year with record sales levels.  Our latest product models, the Evactron^® CombiClean^TM System and the Evactron^® SoftClean^TM Chamber received a strong response last month at the ISTFA Convention in San Jose and the Materials Research Society's (MRS) Fall Meeting in Boston. All of us at XEI Scientific, Inc. wish you and yours a wonderful holiday season.

November 2011: XEI Scientific, Inc. will attend the ISTFA Convention this month in San Jose November 15-16th and the Material Research Society (MRS) Fall Meeting in Boston from November 28-December 2nd. For full details on these and other shows that XEI will attend, please visit our Shows page. Also in New News: XEI Scientific, Inc. hired two new staff members: XEI hired a production assistant and a Communications Specialist at its Redwood City, CA headquarters.

October 2011: XEI Scientific, Inc. attended the SPIE Photomask Technology Conference in Monterey, California last month. The show is described as "the premier conference and exhibition for mask design, production, integration, and next-generation mask technologies and the photomask industry" (SPIE).  XEI is preparing to participate in next month's ISTFA and MRS conventions. For more information, please see our Shows page.

September 2011: XEI Scientific, Inc. celebrates 20 Years in the Microscopy World. XEI Scientific Inc, manufacturers of more than 1,100 EVACTRON® De-Contaminator Plasma Cleaning Systems for electron microscopes and other vacuum chambers, celebrated 20 years in the service of the electron microscopy community with a full agenda at this year's Microscopy and Microanalysis event held in Nashville in August. Read the full Press Release.

XEI Scientific, Inc. will attend the SPIE Photomask Technology show in Monterey, California September 19-22nd. Find us at Table #117. Check out our Shows page for all upcoming shows and conventions.

August 2011: XEI Scientific, Inc.'s Global Sales Director, Tom Levesque, is interviewed by Microscopy and Analysis at the Microscopy & Microanalysis show this month about XEI's newest product additions, the Evactron^® CombiClean^TM System and the Evactron^® SoftClean^TMChamber:

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XEI Scientific To Unveil Two New Products at Microscopy & Microanalysis Show XEI Scientific will exhibit at the Microscopy & Microanalysis show this month (August 7-11, 2011) in Nashville, Tennessee. At this event, the company will unveil its newest product additions: the Evactron^® CombiClean^TM System and the Evactron^® SoftClean^TM Chamber.

The Evactron CombiClean System features a new integrated controller and vacuum chamber, allowing the operator to easily select between internal and external Plasma Radical Sources (PRS).  Multiple specimens may be cleaned at once in the chamber.  A storage mode allows the user to preserve cleaned specimens under dry nitrogen even when the electron column is being cleaned with the external PRS.

Evactron^® CombiClean^TM System
Drawing by George Safar, XEI Scientific, Inc.

The Evactron^® CombiClean^TM System features a dry nitrogen purge, allowing use with inexpensive rotary vane pumps and preventing backstreaming. Among other benefits, the system includes multiple insertion ports for cleaning TEM sample holders.

More information

Unlike traditional plasma cleaning systems, which can expose sensitive samples to damaging heat and ion bombardment, the Evactron^® SoftClean^TM Chamber and Evactron ^® CombiClean ^TM Systems both use the proven down-stream plasma cleaning technology employed in over 1,100 other XEI Evactron systems.  This process uses RF generated plasma to create reactive gas radicals that chemically etch problematic hydrocarbon molecules, breaking them down into volatile species that are easily removed by the vacuum system.

Evactron SoftClean Chamber

Spec sheets for both the Evactron CombiClean System and the Evactron SoftClean Chamber will be available at the Microscopy & Microanalysis show and on our website here.

July 2011: XEI Scientific Expands Distribution Channels XEI Scientific, maker of the popular EVACTRON® Plasma Cleaning System for electron microscopes and other vacuum chambers, announces the addition of two new sales agents: Exclusive coverage of Australia and New Zealand will be provided by NewSpec Pty Ltd.  The contact is Inderpeet Gill who serves as AFM and Electron Microscopy Specialist.  Taiwan is now covered by Omega Scientific Taiwan Limited, and the contact is James Ting.  We welcome both of these quality organizations and look forward to them providing first rate service to our existing and future customers.

Please check our sales page for contact information for all of our sales agents around the world.

April 2011: Evactron Decontaminator Cleans Carbon Contamination with Hydrogen XEI Scientific, Inc. continues to expand the uses of the Evactron E45 Decontamination system. A presentation by Dr. Gabe Morgan at the SPIE Advanced Lithography meeting in early March showed that using atomic hydrogen created by the Evactron plasma is effective in cleaning carbon contamination from EUV optics.

For the semiconductor industry to continue making smaller features, lithographic systems are moving to shorter wavelengths such as EUV and the very elaborate and expensive optics required may be damaged by oxygen cleaning. Using the Evactron Plasma Cleaning system with hydrogen gas has produced atomic hydrogen and been successful in removing hydrocarbon contamination from EUV mirrors. Cleaning rates were seen in the nanometers per minute range and at distances of up to 30 cm from the remote plasma source.

Work is continuing both at XEI and with selected partners in the field to optimize the system parameters for well characterized and reliable downstream plasma cleaning for this important solution for future semiconductor production.

XEI Scientific Announces New Sales Agents XEI Scientific is pleased to announce several major improvements to our sales channels.  In Latin America, XEI has retained Carlos Segovia and his company Micra Nanotechnogia S.A. with offices in Mexico City and Buenos Aires, they are now serving customers in Mexico, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Ecuador and Venezuela.  

Also, in the US, the Southwestern States of California, New Mexico and Arizona are now covered by Fred Houston of Ventura Precision.  In Asia, mainland China is now being exclusively serviced by Simon Hao and Grapes Hangzhou Technology Co.,LTD.

February 2011: XEI Scientific retains Acutance as our exclusive UK and Ireland agent XEI Scientific welcomes Dr. Ian Holton and Acutance as they join our distribution network, serving the UK and Ireland. Ian's experience in the SEM world has most recently included the role of Managing Director at Obducat CamScan Ltd. Before that he was the Director of Development at Omicron Nanotechnology, UK Ltd. We welcome his technical expertise and wish him success as he now establishes his distribution business.

XEI Scientific announces shipment of 1000th Evactron^® system XEI Scientific Inc, maker of the popular EVACTRON® Plasma Cleaning System for electron microscopes and other vacuum chambers, announced that with the final shipments of 2010, they have fulfilled orders bringing the total number of Evactron systems delivered to more than 1,000 units worldwide.

Global Director of Sales, Tom Levesque said "We are very proud of reaching this significant milestone. The Evactron in situ plasma cleaning solution is now seen as the standard for removal of hydrocarbon-based contamination in a large variety of vacuum systems around the world. Offered for nearly all makes of electron microscopes, dual beam FIBs and other imaging tools with clean vacuum requirements, this proven, safe technology has provided cost effective contamination removal for the most demanding imaging and metrology applications."

XEI Scientific Product Manager, Gabe Morgan, is quoted as stating "The Evactron has always come with a guarantee protecting the users from any damage to sensitive chamber components such as X-Ray detector windows. Now, even with this significant number of units in the field, we are proud to say that we have never had to repair or replace any components damaged by the Evactron cleaning process."

Currently, XEI is introducing the in situ technology for use in Transmission Electron Microscopy by means of the TEM WandT. Further, new applications where extremely clean surfaces are critical such as EUV Lithography, synthesis of novel nano-materials or operations by nano-manipulators continue to expand the potential uses of the XEI technology.

December 2010: XEI Scientific retains Tom Levesque as Global Sales Director XEI Scientific Inc, maker of the popular EVACTRON® Plasma Cleaning System for electron microscopes and other vacuum chambers, announced today that they have retained new executive level advisors to direct worldwide sales and marketing. Signing a contract with Tom Levesque and Technology Business Consulting, LLC, the company will immediately begin to strengthen existing sales and marketing efforts in distribution, product definition, marketing programs and product development. With over 30 years experience in assisting technology companies to provide a clear and compelling message describing the solutions offered to solve customers’ problems, Mr. Levesque will focus on clarifying the significant value of XEI’s products to customers, OEM partners and potential new markets. Ron Vane, President of XEI says “We are excited to be able to add Tom’s experience to our efforts. The EVACTRON® systems have already been shown to be useful in many applications with over 1000 installations. Our success has attracted imitators, and we need Tom’s help to maintain our lead in technology and sales. With his added depth in sales, marketing and distribution management, we see substantial opportunity to continue growing our business.”

August 2010:  XEI Scientific attended the 2010 Microscopy & Microanalysis Convention held in Portland, OR.  Our company presented a paper on our new TEM plasma cleaning Wand.  Greg MacMahon of Boston College also presented a paper on using the Evactron^® De-Contaminator (D-C) to clean SEM chambers in which a nanoprobe is operated.  An SEM chamber decontaminated by the Evactron process will allow extended operation times of nanoprobes.

April 2010: XEI Scientific introduces its exciting new product for TEM plasma cleaning, the Evactron® TEM Cleaning WAND.

The TEM Wand allows the user to remove hydrocarbon contamination quickly and without extra hardware. The RF electrode used to create the oxygen radicals is now mounted on the end of a TEM sample rod. The user first vents the chamber and then inserts the Wand similar to the way one would insert a sample rod. Now cleaning in the TEM can occur right where it is needed in the sample examination region. After cleaning, the user removes the Wand and allows the chamber to pump down. The TEM is now cleaned and ready to take higher quality images. Operates in the 0.2-0.8 Torr pressure range with RF power between 5-20 W.

February 2010:  XEI attended the 2010 SPIE Advanced Lithography convention. We presented work done by our company and the Center for X-Ray Optics on cleaning extreme ultraviolet (EUV) mirrors using the Evactron^® D-C.  This work was performed through our collaboration with the National Science Foundation EUV Engineering Research Center.

August 2009:  XEI attended the 2009 Microscopy and Microanalysis Meeting in Richmond, VA. Our company sponsored a poster session on contamination control in electron microscopy.

March 2009: XEI Introduces new Model RFS-20 low power RF power supply for only $2495 USD. It generates 0-20 Watts of RF power at 13.56 MHz.

September 2008: XEI Scientific products are certified for product safety and Quality Assurance by TÜV Rheinlander USA for the TÜV NRTL mark and Semi S2 standards. The inspection certified that XEI manufacturing is done with inventory control, and controllered Assembly and Test procedures. Safety tests now include HiPot and ground continuity on all units. Functional tests include Vacuum leak detection, and overnight burn-in tests. All products now will carry these marks

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XEI is also CE certified by TUV for all Evactron Models, and complies with the RoHS, "Reduction of Hazardous Substances" initiative, or lead free initiative, required for continue sales to Europe after July 1, 2006.

August 2008:  XEI Scientific attended the 2008 Microscopy and Microanalysis Convention in Albuquerque, NM.  Our company presented a paper  on using different gas mixtures to clean with the Evactron^® D-C

April 2008: XEI Scientific visited the Society of Vacuum Coaters Technical Conference. We introduced the new Evactron 55 De-Contaminator for large chambers at the show and received a great deal of interest for various Evactron applications beyond electron microscopy. Our Application Scientist, Dr. Gabe Morgan, gave a presentation about our products in a Technical Session on Plasma Processing.  P-17 Low Power Remote Plasma Cleaning.pdf  Another interesting presentation was by Elisabeth Strein, an undergraduate researcher working with Prof. David Allred at Brigham Young University. She presented surface ellipsometry data and X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS) showing that significant amounts of adventitious carbon can be deposited on substrates in as little as six hours of storage in air. She also reported that using an Evactron C attached to her XPS antechamber helped make sure that the carbon deposits she observed were not from contamination in her XPS system.

March 2008: XEI Scientific introduces its new impedance match design into most of its product line. This new match is more reliable and delivers a greater amount of forward power to the plasma, thereby creating more oxygen radicals and leading to greater cleaning efficiency.

February 2008: NIST publishes new contamination specifications using the Evactron^® RF Plasma Cleaners. Contamination Specification for Dimensional Metrology SEMs (Abstract 6922-41, page 75 of SPIE's 2008 Advanced Lithography Technical Abstract Summaries) by András E. Vladár, K. P. Purushotham and Michael T. Postek.  XEI Scientific attended the SPIE Advanced Lithography Convention.  Evactron^® RF Plasma Cleaner prevents erroneous readings due to electron microscope contamination of etchings in integrated circuits .