Microchannel plate manufacturing method

Abstract

The invention discloses a micro-channel plate manufacturing method, which comprises the following steps of: bombarding a processing sample through heavy ions to form a plurality of micro-channels on the processing sample; cleaning the path of the micro-channel, and expanding the aperture of the micro-channel; performing high-impedance treatment on the inner wall of the micro-channel to form a high-impedance inner wall; on the basis of the steps, the high-energy heavy ions generated by the high-energy accelerator are used for bombarding the glass sample with set parameters to manufacture the micro-channel plate, so that the tedious manufacturing processes of manufacturing a capillary glass tube and machining and shaping are omitted; the production efficiency is improved, the manufacturing time is shortened, and the production cost is reduced. The technical problem that much inconvenience is brought to production, processing and use due to the fact that micro-channel plates in the market are prone to deformation and even damage in the production process is solved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to the technical field of microchannel plate manufacturing, and in particular to a method for manufacturing a microchannel plate. Background Art

[0002] Microchannel plate (MCP for short) is an electric vacuum device formed by fusing a plurality of regularly arranged capillary glass tube arrays. The capillary glass tube is made of special glass. After hydrogen reduction treatment, a continuous secondary electron emission layer and a semiconductor layer are obtained on the inner surface of the channel and within a certain depth. When a voltage is applied to both ends, the multiplication of secondary electrons can be achieved. For a piece of MCP, when the voltage at both ends is about 22 times its aspect ratio, its gain can reach the order of 104. Since this material has a certain quantum detection efficiency for charged particles and photons of specific energy (UV and soft X-rays), and it has the advantages of small size, light weight, good spatial and temporal resolution, high gain, low noise, and resistance to electromagnetic interference, it has been widely used in low-light image intensifiers, photomultiplier tubes, and scientific instruments (such as mass spectrometers, Auger electron spectrometers, X-ray photoelectron spectrometers, etc.).

[0003] Although microchannel plates are currently well used in many application fields, their manufacturing process and manufacturing technology are very complicated. Specifically, glass must first be made into capillary glass tubes. The inner diameter of the capillary glass tube is generally several microns, and the thinner the wall thickness of the glass tube, the better. At the same time, multiple regularly arranged capillary glass tube arrays are fused to form an electric vacuum device, which is a complex process and difficult. In addition, when the capillary glass tube is subjected to hydrogen reduction treatment. Due to the miniaturization of the channel, the channel wall thickness of a 5um microchannel plate cannot be greater than 0.7um, and the channel wall thickness of a 4um microchannel plate cannot be greater than 0.6um. Such a thin microchannel plate is very easy to deform or even break, forming field emission, which brings many problems to production, processing and use; in addition, the miniaturization of the channel will make the geometric structure of the microchannel plate difficult to control. Summary of the invention

[0004] The purpose of the present invention is to solve the technical problems existing in the background technology and to provide a method for manufacturing a microchannel plate, comprising the following steps:

[0005] S1: Processing the sample by heavy ion bombardment to form a number of microchannels on the processed sample;

[0006] S2: clean the microchannel path and expand the pore size of the microchannel;

[0007] S3: performing “high impedance treatment” on the inner wall of the microchannel to form a high impedance inner wall;

[0008] S4: Thin film structures are arranged at both ends of the processed sample to form a microchannel plate.

[0009] In some embodiments, the processed sample is a glass sample, which includes a first end face and a second end face that are oppositely disposed. Heavy ions penetrate into the glass sample from the first end face and pass out from the second end face to form a plurality of microchannels on the glass sample.

[0010] In some embodiments, the glass sample is made of materials including electron irradiation sensitive materials and electron reaction sensitive materials.

[0011] In some embodiments, step S2 is implemented based on a chemical etching method, including the following steps: placing the processed sample after irradiation in a hydrofluoric acid solution to clean up the residue in the microchannel and smooth the inner wall of the microchannel.

[0012] In some embodiments, the enlarged pore size of the microchannel is controlled by controlling the etching time of the chemical etching method.

[0013] In some embodiments, the "high impedance treatment" includes the steps of rubbing a high impedance material on the inner wall of the microchannel and subjecting the material to a hydrogen reduction treatment to form a high impedance layer on the inner wall of the microchannel.

[0014] In some embodiments, step S4 includes the following steps: a microchannel plate is formed after nickel-chromium metal films are plated on both end surfaces of the processed sample.

[0015] In some embodiments, step S1 further includes the following step: using a heavy ion detection system to detect the glass sample to ensure the penetration degree of heavy ions.

[0016] In some embodiments, step S1 also includes the following steps: a heavy ion light barrier is set in parallel in front of the processing sample surface, and the area of ​​the heavy ion light barrier is larger than the area of ​​the processing sample to achieve complete shielding of the processing sample. The unit area of ​​the heavy ion light barrier is provided with a plurality of microholes that penetrate the heavy ion light barrier. The processing sample is arranged opposite to the microholes of the heavy ion light barrier. The heavy ion light barrier is used to intercept unnecessary heavy ions to prevent scattered heavy ions from entering the processing sample, while ensuring that the heavy ions passing through the heavy ion light barrier are vertically incident on the processing sample.

[0017] In some embodiments, the heavy ion aperture is 0-1000 microns.

[0018] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial technical effects: a method for manufacturing a microchannel plate of the present invention uses high-energy heavy ions generated by a high-energy accelerator to bombard a glass sample with set parameters to manufacture the microchannel plate, thereby eliminating the tedious manufacturing process of manufacturing a capillary glass tube and mechanical processing and shaping, thereby improving production efficiency, shortening production time and reducing production costs. The method solves the technical problem that microchannel plates on the market are prone to deformation or even damage during production, forming field emission, and causing many inconveniences in production, processing and use. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] Figure 1 The method flow of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 2 Schematic diagram of sample processing by heavy ion bombardment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0022] It should also be understood that the terms used in this specification of the present invention are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present invention. As used in the specification of the present invention and the appended claims, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include plural forms.

[0023] It should be further understood that the term "and / or" used in the present description and the appended claims refers to any and all possible combinations of one or more of the associated listed items, and includes these combinations.

[0024] like Figure 1 , Figure 2 As shown, the present invention proposes a method for manufacturing a microchannel plate, the principle of which is to use the principle that high-energy heavy ions generated by a high-energy heavy ion accelerator will cause energy loss during the interaction with matter, and the bombarded matter will be damaged to manufacture the microchannel plate. Specifically, the method for manufacturing a microchannel plate of the present invention includes the following steps:

[0025] S1: Processing the sample by heavy ion bombardment to form several microchannels with small apertures on the processed sample;

[0026] S2: clean the microchannel path and expand the pore size of the microchannel;

[0027] S3: performing “high impedance treatment” on the inner wall of the microchannel to form a high impedance inner wall;

[0028] S4: Thin film structures are arranged at both ends of the processed sample to form a microchannel plate.

[0029] In some embodiments, for step S1, the processed sample can be a glass sample or other sample materials that can form microchannels, and its specific implementation method can be: high-energy heavy ions generated by a high-energy accelerator are bombarded with the glass sample in a vertical manner, and the glass sample includes a first end face and a second end face that are relatively set. The heavy ions penetrate from the first end face and exit from the second end face to form a number of small-aperture microchannels on the glass sample.

[0030] Further, in some embodiments, the glass sample of the present invention can be Type II silica glass, containing an OH concentration of about 150wt.ppm, an Al content of ≤20wt.ppm and other metal impurities <1wt.ppm, a thickness of about 300μm, a density of 2.27g / cm3, and colorless and transparent. The formation of the glass sample microchannel is based on 1.157GeV56Fe and 1.755GeV136Xe ion irradiation experiments completed at the irradiation terminal of the Lanzhou Heavy Ion Accelerator (HIRFL). Specifically, the irradiation conditions of this embodiment are vacuum, and vertical incidence is adopted. The doses of the Fe ion irradiated samples are 5×1011, 1×1012 and 3.8×1012ions / cm2, respectively, and the doses of the Xe ion irradiated samples are 1×1011 and 4×1011ions / cm2, respectively. In order to reduce the heating effect of irradiation on the sample, the flux is controlled below 2×108ions / s / cm2 during the irradiation process. The radiation exposure was monitored in real time by a secondary electronic monitor and calibrated by measurements in a Faraday cup.

[0031] Further, in some embodiments, with respect to step S2, it can be understood that after the heavy ions bombard the glass sample, some glass residues will be formed in the microchannel, and therefore the glass residues in the microchannel need to be cleaned. In the present embodiment, "cleaning of glass residues and smoothing of the inner wall" can be achieved through a chemical etching method. Specifically, the irradiated glass sample is placed in a hydrofluoric acid solution to clean up the glass residues in the microchannel and smooth the inner wall of the microchannel.

[0032] Furthermore, for the cleaned glass sample, the aperture of the microchannel needs to be enlarged as needed. In some embodiments, the aperture enlargement of the microchannel can be achieved by extending the etching time of the chemical etching method, that is, according to different chemical etching durations, to obtain microchannels with different aperture sizes. It can be understood that during the chemical etching process, since the hexahedron and the inner diameter of the micropore are etched at the same rate at the same time, the expansion of the microchannel aperture is guaranteed, and the consistency of the aperture of the microchannel in its length direction is also guaranteed.

[0033] Furthermore, in some embodiments, the “high impedance treatment” of the inner wall of the microchannel in step S3 can be performed by coating the inner wall of the microchannel with a high impedance material, such as high-lead glass, and then subjecting the layer to hydrogen reduction treatment to form a high impedance layer on the inner wall of the microchannel, thereby improving the detection efficiency when detecting heavy ions or infrared rays.

[0034] Furthermore, in some embodiments, for step S4, a microchannel plate may be fabricated after nickel-chromium metal films are plated on both end surfaces of the glass sample.

[0035] Further, in some embodiments, the materials in the glass sample of the present invention include electron irradiation sensitive materials and electron reaction sensitive materials. Specifically, materials that are relatively sensitive to electron irradiation, such as Fe, which has the characteristic of absorbing infrared rays, can be added to the glass sample. The amount of iron added is set according to the purpose of the microchannel detector. Preferably, the content of Fe is between 1% and 1 / 10,000. Further, electron reaction sensitive materials can be added to the glass sample. The electron reaction sensitive materials can be materials such as PC, PET, PI and Cr39. When heavy ions irradiate the glass sample, a large number of electrons are generated when the heavy ions interact with the substances in the sample. These electrons also interact with the electron reaction sensitive materials in the glass. Through this interaction, the material linking part in the sample is broken or otherwise changed, so as to achieve the purpose of cleaning the microchannel by etching technology.

[0036] Furthermore, in some embodiments, step S1 also includes the following steps: using a heavy ion detection system to detect the glass sample to ensure the degree of penetration of the heavy ions. It can be understood that for the glass sample after heavy ion bombardment, before performing step S2, it is necessary to further detect it to distinguish between qualified products and defective products. Specifically, the heavy ion detection system is used to detect several microchannels formed in the glass sample to check whether the microchannels are transparent and whether there are any residual obstacles on the channel path. Since heavy ion detection is an existing technology and the internal quality inspection methods of the microchannels are not unified, the operating methods and steps are not exactly the same, which will not be repeated here.

[0037] Furthermore, in some embodiments, for step S1, in order to ensure that the heavy ions are vertically injected into the glass sample to form a number of microchannels perpendicular to the end face of the glass sample and parallel to each other, a heavy ion light bar can be set in parallel in front of the first end face of the glass sample. The area of ​​the heavy ion light bar is larger than the area of ​​the glass sample to achieve complete shielding of the glass sample. The material can be metal or other materials that can intercept heavy ions, and the thickness is set to a specification sufficient to prevent heavy ions from penetrating. Furthermore, a unit area of ​​the heavy ion light bar is provided with a number of microholes that penetrate the heavy ion light bar, and the number of microholes is set according to actual needs. The glass sample is arranged opposite the microholes of the heavy ion light bar. As an embodiment, the aperture of the heavy ion light bar of the present invention can be 0-1000 microns. Through the above-mentioned arrangement, when heavy ions bombard the glass sample, heavy ions whose bombardment path is inconsistent with the micropore path of the heavy ion light barrier will be intercepted, and only heavy ions whose path is consistent with the micropore path of the ion light barrier will be allowed to pass through, thereby realizing the bombardment of the glass sample. That is, the heavy ion light barrier of the present invention can intercept unnecessary heavy ions during the irradiation process to prevent scattered ions from entering the glass sample, while ensuring that the heavy ions are vertically incident on the glass sample to form a number of microchannels in the glass sample that are perpendicular to the end face of the glass sample and parallel to each other.

[0038] In summary, the present invention provides a method for manufacturing a microchannel plate, which manufactures a microchannel plate by bombarding a glass sample with set parameters with high-energy heavy ions generated by a high-energy accelerator, thereby eliminating the tedious manufacturing process of manufacturing a capillary glass tube and mechanical processing and shaping, thereby improving production efficiency, shortening production time and reducing production costs. The method solves the technical problem that microchannel plates on the market are prone to deformation or even damage during production, forming field emission, and causing many inconveniences in production, processing and use.

[0039] The above is one or more implementation methods provided in combination with specific contents, and it is not intended that the specific implementation of the present invention is limited to these descriptions. Any similarity or similarity with the method, structure, etc. of the present invention, or any technical deduction or replacement made on the premise of the concept of the present invention, shall be regarded as the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing a microchannel plate, characterized in that: The steps include: S1: processing a sample by heavy ion bombardment to form a plurality of microchannels on the processed sample; S2: clean the microchannel path and expand the pore size of the microchannel; S3: performing "high impedance treatment" on the inner wall of the microchannel to form a high impedance inner wall; S4: Disposing thin film structures at both ends of the processed sample to form a microchannel plate.

2. A method for manufacturing a microchannel plate according to claim 1, characterized in that: The processed sample is a glass sample, which includes a first end face and a second end face that are oppositely arranged. Heavy ions penetrate into the glass sample from the first end face and pass out from the second end face to form a plurality of microchannels on the glass sample.

3. A method for manufacturing a microchannel plate according to claim 2, characterized in that: The glass sample is made of materials including electron irradiation sensitive materials and electron reaction sensitive materials.

4. A method for manufacturing a microchannel plate according to claim 1, characterized in that: The "step S2" is implemented based on a chemical etching method, and the "cleaning the microchannel path" includes the following steps: placing the processed sample after irradiation in a hydrofluoric acid solution to clean up the residue in the microchannel and smooth the inner wall of the microchannel.

5. A method for manufacturing a microchannel plate according to claim 4, characterized in that: The “enlarging the pore size of the microchannel” comprises the following steps: controlling the enlarged pore size of the microchannel by controlling the etching time of the chemical etching method.

6. A method for manufacturing a microchannel plate according to claim 1, characterized in that: The “high impedance treatment” includes the following steps: applying a high impedance material on the inner wall of the microchannel, and performing a hydrogen reduction treatment to form a high impedance layer on the inner wall of the microchannel.

7. A method for manufacturing a microchannel plate according to claim 1, characterized in that: The "step S4" includes the following steps: plating nickel-chromium metal films on both end surfaces of the processed sample to form a microchannel plate.

8. The method for manufacturing a microchannel plate according to claim 1, characterized in that: The "step S1" also includes the following steps: using a heavy ion detection system to detect the glass sample to ensure the penetration degree of heavy ions.

9. A method for manufacturing a microchannel plate according to claim 1, characterized in that: The "step S1" also includes the following steps: a heavy ion light barrier is arranged in parallel in front of the processing sample surface, the area of ​​the heavy ion light barrier is larger than the area of ​​the processing sample to shield the processing sample, the heavy ion light barrier is provided with a plurality of microholes that penetrate the heavy ion light barrier, the processing sample is arranged opposite to the microholes of the heavy ion light barrier, the heavy ion light barrier is used to intercept unnecessary heavy ions to prevent scattered heavy ions from entering the processing sample, and at the same time ensure that the heavy ions passing through the heavy ion light barrier are vertically incident on the processing sample.

10. A method for manufacturing a microchannel plate according to claim 9, characterized in that: The heavy ion light barrier aperture is 0-1000 microns.

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