Statement of Requirements .pdf

STATEMENT OF REQUIREMENTS

TITLE: Broad-beam Argon Ion Mill

I. BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Staff members of the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST’s)

Materials Science and Engineering (MSED) and Materials Measurement Science

Divisions (MMSD) regularly prepare scanning electron microscopy (SEM) samples to acquire energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and electron backscatter diffraction

(EBSD) data. The types of sample vary greatly but include: (a) metal alloys produced by conventional or additive processes including steels, stainless steels, nickel super alloys, titanium alloys, and aluminum alloys, (b) polished ceramics produced by conventional or additive methods including barium titanate, (c) semiconductors including silicon, gallium arsenide, and gallium nitride, and (d) cross-sectioning of any of the materials listed above. Most of these samples are mounted, ground, and polished with conventional metallurgical practices before final polishing would be performed via broad beam argon ion milling.

II. SCOPE OF WORK

The contractor shall deliver one broad beam argon ion mill meeting the specifications listed, provide, at a minimum, a one (1) year warranty, and provide training sessions.

Additionally, the contractor shall provide line item options for extension of the warranty to begin after the end of the 1-year warranty for the base period.

III. SPECIFICATIONS

1. Broad beam argon ion mill

1.1. One, two, or three argon ion guns with user adjustability of:

1.1.1. operating energies (OE) must include the range of: 500 eV ≤ OE ≤8 keV

1.1.2. incident angles (IA) must include the range of: 0° ≤ IA ≤ 10°

1.1.3. ion flux of at least 10 mA/cm2

1.2. Computer controlled operation that allows:

1.2.1. user recipes with specified sequences of operation energy, ion flux, and time

1.2.2. saving and recalling of recipes

1.2.3. termination of recipes by time or temperature (e.g. terminate if cryogenic cooling ends due to lack of LN2 supply)

1.3. Milling rate must exceed 50 µm/hr on Si within a 1 mm diameter region

1.4. Planar milling of a 3 mm diameter centered on the sample mount must be possible

1.4.1. Planar milling will be evaluated by milling a Si chip to a target depth of 25 µm.

The 3 mm diameter region in the center of the crater must be flat with a peak to valley depth of ± 2 µm.

2. Sample capacity

2.1. The system must accommodate 32 mm diameter by 12.5 mm tall cylindrical samples for planar milling

2.2. The system must accommodate 10 mm ×10 mm × 1 mm Si chips in cross-sectioning milling

2.3. Samples must be able to be rotated 360° during planar milling operations

3. Cryogenic cooling system - system must have a liquid nitrogen (LN2) system capable of cooling the sample while milling for durations of at least 8 hours

4. Cross-section capabilities - via a jig or holder mechanism, the system must be capable of targeted location cross-sectioning

5. Vacuum system – the sample chamber must be turbo pumped and capable of being kept under vacuum when the unit is in stand-by mode

6. Additional Requirements

6.1. Power – unit must operate off 120 VAC, 15 A circuit from a NEMA 15R (US standard plug)

6.2. Size – unit must be a benchtop device with a footprint smaller than 30” deep and 48” wide

6.3. Gas supply – unit must operate off a standard argon cylinder (CGA 580)

7. Installation – NIST staff will perform the physical installation, but the vendor must provide telephone technical support if required to complete the install. Vendors may include onsite installation if required for their system.

8. AM 17-4 SS Performance Requirement – The system must be capable of removing the phase transformed (damaged) layer on additively manufactured (AM) 17-4 stainless steel. The volumetric phase fraction of austenite for this material exceeds 95% when measured by high energy (synchrotron) x-ray diffraction (XRD). However, conventional sample preparation

(grinding, polishing, vibro-polishing) leaves a martensite layer (phase transformed/damaged) that is approximately 10 µm thick. The broad-beam ion mill must remove this phase transformed (damaged) layer revealing the austenite phase of the bulk. Success is defined by

EBSD area fraction analysis using 20 kV electrons. The area fraction of austenite must exceed 90%.

Delivery:

Delivery shall be FOB DESTINATION and shall occur within 120 calendar days of award.

Prior to shipment, the Contractor must ensure the NIST Gaithersburg campus is open and accepting deliveries. If the access restrictions to the campus impact delivery schedules, a modification may be executed by the CO to establish an extended delivery timeframe.

Installation:

Installation will occur on the NIST Gaithersburg campus during business hours Monday through

Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. except for Federal holidays.

Training:

The contractor shall provide at a minimum 4 hours and up to 8 hours of operation and application training for up to 4 NIST staff. Training shall be provided during normal business hours, between 8:30 am and 5:00 pm Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, except Federal

Holidays, as coordinated with the NIST TPOC. Training can be performed onsite or remotely.

Initial Warranty:

The Contractor shall provide, at a minimum, a one (1) year warranty on the equipment. The warranty shall cover all parts, labor, and travel. The warranty will not start until acceptance of the broad-beam argon ion mill by the Government.

Extension of Warranty:

The Contractor shall provide options to extend the initial one-year warranty for up to an additional four years, in one-year increments.

IV. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

The period of performance for the initial warranty will begin upon the acceptance of the ion mill.

Additional optional years of extended warranty will run consecutively:

Initial Warranty – Year 1

Optional Extended Warranty – Year 2

Optional Extended Warranty – Year 3

Optional Extended Warranty – Year 4

Optional Extended Warranty – Year 5

V. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

All manufacturing and assembly work shall be completed at the Contractor’s facility.

Installation of the instrument shall be accomplished by the Contractor at NIST’s Gaithersburg, Maryland campus. Training shall be accomplished by the Contractor at NIST’s Gaithersburg, Maryland campus or remotely using the internet. Normal duty hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. except for Federal holidays.

VI. DELIVERABLES

Description Quantity Due Date broad-beam argon ion mill One

System (1)

120 calendar days after award of this requirement.

Applications Training Up to 8 hours

Within 60 calendar days of acceptance

Initial Warranty for 1 year (FY22-

FY23)

1 year 1 year warranty commences upon government acceptance.

OPTIONAL – Extended warranty coverage for 1 year (FY23 -FY24).

1 year 1 year upon exercise of option.

Description Quantity Due Date

OPTIONAL - Extended warranty coverage for 1 year (FY24 -FY25).

1 year 1 year upon exercise of option.

OPTIONAL- Extended warranty coverage for 1 year (FY25 -FY26).

1 year 1 year upon exercise of option.

OPTIONAL - Extended warranty coverage for 1 year (FY26 -FY27).

1 year 1 year upon exercise of option.

VII. ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA

NIST will evaluate the instrument to determine if it meets the specifications within 14 calendar days of installation. In addition to basic functional tests, NIST will perform two acceptance tests: (1) planar milling of a Si chip to determine the minimum milling rate and flatness specification is met, and (2) planar milling of a AM 17-4 stainless steel sample to determine the volume fraction the austenite phase exceeds 90% by using Electron Backscatter Diffraction

(EBSD) at 20 kV accelerating voltage