This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 2003-55886, filed on Aug. 12, 2003, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a carrier capable of shielding a sample from moisture, and an analyzing apparatus including the carrier.
2. Description of the Related Art
However, while the sample holder is being mounted on the sample holder mounting portion 1, it may collide with the entrance 2, and, accordingly, a sample may be damaged. Also, while the locking portion 3 is being installed in an analyzing apparatus, a fixing device of the locking portion 3 may collide with the analyzing apparatus, and accordingly, the locking porting 3 may be damaged. Further, since the flange 4 is welded, if it is vacuum-destroyed by an impact, repair of the carrier is difficult. A conventional carrier used in a conventional analyzing apparatus does not have a moisture shielding function. Hence, to maintain a vacuum in a sample and shield moisture, air is blocked using an air curtain, or an analyzing apparatus is installed within a dry room or a dry box.
A conventional analyzing apparatus must prevent moisture from being introduced into all of the equipment of the analyzing apparatus, thus greatly increasing maintenance costs. A conventional carrier for carrying a sample does not have a moisture shielding function, thus increasing a probability that the sample will have a contact with air.
The present invention provides a carrier capable of shielding a sample from moisture, and an analyzing apparatus including the carrier.
Additional aspects and/or advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention.
According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a carrier comprising a sample holder having a guide groove, a sample receiver on which to mount the sample holder, the sample receiver having a guide rail to couple with the guide groove, and a sample elevator to elevate the sample receiver up and down, to receive and discharge the sample holder, wherein the sample elevator comprises a driving portion to drive the sample receiver up and down, and a vacuum chamber to maintain a vacuum in an enclosed state around the sample holder.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an analyzing apparatus comprising an analyzing chamber, a sample mounting portion to move a sample into the analyzing chamber, an illuminating portion to radiate an electron beam to the sample, and a detection portion to detect electrons from the sample to analyze a surface of the sample. The sample mounting portion comprises a carrier comprising a sample holder having a guide groove, a sample receiver on which to mount the sample holder, the sample receiver having a guide rail to couple with the guide groove, and a sample elevator to elevate the sample receiver up and down to receive and discharge the sample holder, wherein the sample elevator comprises a driving portion to drive the sample receiver up and down, and a vacuum chamber to maintain a vacuum in an enclosed state; a loading chamber detachably coupled to the analyzing chamber and the carrier, to load the sample holder into the analyzing chamber; and a guide bar to move the sample holder into the loading chamber.
The sample receiver may include a fixing pin to prevent movement of the sample holder.
The fixing pin may protrude upward from a bottom surface of the sample receiver.
The guide rail may protrude from both side surfaces of the sample receiver toward an inner area of the sample receiver.
The guide rail may be formed of at least one rib.
The sample holder may comprise a restacker in which the guide groove is formed, and a clamper coupled to an upper part of the restacker.
The driving portion may comprise a screw to move the sample receiver up and down, a rotating shaft to rotate the screw, and a handle coupled to the rotating shaft, to apply a rotating force to the rotating shaft.
The sample elevator may further comprise a locking portion to couple to an external apparatus.
These and/or other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:
Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elements throughout. The embodiments are described below to explain the present invention by referring to the figures.
Referring to
Referring to
The sample receiver 11 has a space in which the sample holder 31 is mounted. The guide rail 17 guides a movement of the sample holder 31 by interlocking with the guide groove 32 of the sample holder 31, and protrudes from left and right walls of the sample receiver 11 toward the inside of the sample receiver 11. The guide rail 17 may be a plate as shown in
A fixing member, illustrated in this embodiment by the fixing pin 18, protrudes upward from a bottom surface of the sample receiver 11 and prevents the sample holder 31 from being separated from the sample receiver 11. Left and right protrusions of the guide rail 17 are in the shape of plates but may be formed of a plurality of ribs to guide the sample holder 31. An entrance 12 coupled to the sample elevator 19 is located above the sample receiver 11.
The sample elevator 19 includes the vacuum chamber 16, which creates a vacuum for the sample, the driving portion (not shown), which is located within the vacuum chamber 16 and drives the sample receiver 11 up and down, and a locking portion 13, which locks the carrier 10 to an analyzing apparatus. The handle 15 is a part of the driving portion, which will be described later with reference to
First, a connecting portion 24 of the loading chamber 27, which will be interlocked with a locking portion 13 of the carrier 10, is covered with a lid to make a vacuum in a chamber of the analyzing apparatus including the loading chamber 27. The carrier 10, in which the sample holder 31 is loaded on the sample receiver 11, is brought to the analyzing apparatus.
A vacuum of the loading chamber 27 is released, and then the carrier 10 is coupled to the loading chamber 27 via the connecting portion 24. Thereafter, the loading chamber 27 is returned to a vacuum state. Next, the loading chamber 27 is completely fixed to the chamber of the analyzing apparatus by turning a fixing ring R. When the loading chamber 27 completely enters into a vacuum state, the handle 15 of the carrier 10 is turned to insert the sample receiver 11 into the loading chamber 27.
The guide bar 28 is pushed into the loading chamber 27, clamps the sample holder 31, and moves the sample holder 31 toward the analyzing chamber of the analyzing apparatus. Before the sample receiver 11 is removed from the vacuum chamber 16 of the carrier 10, the fixing ring R is turned to open a door between the loading chamber 27 and the analyzing chamber of the analyzing apparatus. Then, the guide bar 28 is pushed into the loading chamber 27 and moves the sample holder 31 to a center portion of the analyzing chamber of the analyzing apparatus. The sample holder 31 is located at the center portion of the analyzing chamber of the analyzing apparatus, and then the guide bar 28 is moved out of the analyzing chamber. The fixing ring R is turned to close the door of the analyzing chamber of the analyzing apparatus and separate the analyzing chamber from the loading chamber 27. Thereafter, the analyzing apparatus is driven to analyze the sample. Removal of the sample holder 31 from the chamber of the analyzing apparatus, and a separation of the carrier 10 from the analyzing apparatus, can be achieved by performing the above-described process in opposition.
Although a few embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2003-55886 | Aug 2003 | KR | national |