carbon coating system

The purpose of this amendment to the notice of intent is to answer questions from a contractor. No other questions will be answered. Please see below for questions and answers.

Q1 Substrate material type size and shape ,i.e info on the SEM stages that the enduser is planning on using
A1 We use 1" (2.5 cm) epoxy round mounts with geological samples embedded and polished within them. Alternatively we use standard polished petrographic thin sections.


Q2 How any stages do they want to coat at the same time , and need specs on the rotation requirements.
A2 We want to coat 2x standard petrographic thin sections or up to 6x 1" round epoxy mounts at one time.


Q3 Coating requirements:
-Minimum and Maximum thickness
-Uniformity and any other profile requirements
A3 We desire 250 angstroms thickness, amorphous uniform thickness across the samples.


Q4 Would the system be soly dedicated to carbon coating , or would they want to use other materials in the future ,eg Gold is commonly use din SEM sample preparation but was not laid out in the requirements ?
A4 Solely carbon coating.


This is a notice of intent to solicit from a single source.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), intends to award a purchase order to Rave Scientific in Somerset, NJ for a carbon coating system as described in the attached Salient Characteristics below.

Award will be made in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 13.106-1(b) and the procedures at FAR Part 12 entitled, Acquisition of Commercial Items and FAR Part 13 entitled, Simplified Acquisition Procedures. Rave Scientific is, to the USGS knowledge, the only source who can meet the requirements below for a high vacuum carbon coater system

The purpose of this notice is to satisfy the requirements of FAR Subpart 5.2. This notice of intent is not a request for competitive quotes. However, all responsible parties may submit a capability statement by the closing date of this announcement which shall be considered by the agency. No solicitation will be issued. A determination not to compete this action based upon responses received is in the sole discretion of the Government.

The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code - 334516 Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing, with the associated size standard of 1,000 employees apply to this announcement.

Responses or inquiries shall only be accepted through electronic mail addressed to thuot@usgs.gov and must be uploaded and received in their entirety no later than 01/12/2024 1700 PS. Responses submitted by hardcopy or the SAM.gov portal shall not be accepted or considered.

Required features and specifications:
- Must be high vacuum coater
- Must have digital thickness capabilities (e.g. quartz crystal) for precise thickness determination for each coat
- Must have rotating stage for equal area deposition of carbon coat