Philips SEM 525 Instructions

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PHILIPS SEM 525 INSTRUCTIONS

Start-up:

Turn master mains switch on (if not already on)

Turn the water cooler/circulator timer on to HOLD (counter clockwise)

Press the SEM mains button ON (lower left panel, listen for the mechanical

vacuum pump to come on)

Press the vacuum ON button

The red high vacuum light (left most panel) will be lit.

After about 30

minutes, this light indicator will turn off indicating a sufficient vacuum to

operate the microscope.

However, to ensure maximum filament life, do not

turn the beam on until the vacuum gauge reads well below "10".

Turn o n the exposure light column switch.

Turn o n the "marker" switch.

Turn ON the detector and adjust the "Black Level".

Set the detector to GREY SCALE and adjust brightness and contrast for the

display screens (once set, this does not change appreciably over time).

If using the Polaroid camera, press and hold the photo start button and

press the scan rate 2000 and 32 buttons.

This sets the scan rate for the

camera screen.

The photo scan can be stopped by pressing the interrupt

b u t t o n .

Adjust operating parameters appropriate to the specimen characteristics.

Select accelerating

voltage:

For maximum resolution and high magnification work, use 25 kV or above

with gun bias setting of "1" and a spot size of 20 or 10.

This electron beam

will penetrate well into most samples and require a lower secondary

electron detector gain setting.

The detector bias may be turned to negative

to detect backscattered (BS) electrons if desired, but there will be a lot of BS

electrons with this kV setting.

A better BS image will be obtained using a

lower accelerating voltage.

Page 1 PHILIPS SEM 525 INSTRUCTIONS Start-up: Turn master mains switch on (if not already on) Turn the water cooler/circulator timer on to HOLD (counter clockwise) Press the SEM mains button ON (lower left panel, listen for the mechanical vacuum pump to come on) Press the vacuum ON button The red high vacuum light (left most panel) will be lit.
Page 2 Non-conductive samples may charge with these settings. Biological specimens that have been coated usually can be viewed with a lower accelerating voltage, usually 10 – 15 kV. With this setting, set the gun bias µ to “2” so as to keep the emissions current in a safe range of 30 – 40 A.
Page 3 The “X” and “Y” controls are approximately centered at 500 X 500 with TILT at 0 degrees. Do not adjust the TILT less than 0 degrees nor greater than 90 degrees. Turning ON the electron beam: Turn ON the high tension. There should be a “blip”...
Page 4 Press and “release” the AIR button and press the vacuum ON button. should hear the vacuum pull the door sealed shut. When the vacuum is ready (10 or less on the vacuum gauge and RED high vacuum light is off), the electron beam may be turned on. Shutting down the SEM: Turn the filament current to zero.