Static SIMS method surface analysis

In secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) the sample surface is sputtered by an ion beam and the emitted secondary ions are analyzed by a mass spectrometer (review Ref. [360]). Due to the sputtering process, SIMS is a destructive method. Depending on the sputtering rate we discriminate static and dynamic SIMS. In static SIMS the primary ion dosis is kept below 1012 ions/cm2 to ensure that, on average, every ion hits a fresh surface that has not yet been damaged by the impact of another ion. In dynamic SIMS, multiple layers of molecules are removed at typical sputter rates 0.5 to 5 nm/s. This implies a fast removal of the topmost layers of material but allows quantitative analysis of the elemental composition. 

There are two varieties of SIMS - static and dynamic. Static SIMS (often referred to as time-of-flight SIMS, TOF-SIMS) is often the method-of-choice, used for elemental analysis and imaging of the top two to three monolayers of a sample in comparison, dynamic SIMS is used to determine elemental concentrations of the sample, as a function of depth. As such, dynamic SIMS is a destructive technique primarily used for depth profiling, whereas TOF-SIMS does not appreciably deteriorate the surface being analyzed. For instance, due to a slow, controllable sputtering rate, the entire analysis may be performed without removing less than one-tenths of an atomic monolayer. 

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