The chemical analysis of microparticles is challenging due to the need to mount the particles on a substrate for analysis; double-sided adhesive tape is often used (sometimes conductive), however that is usually coated with poly (dimethyl siloxane) (PDMS) that is often used as a release agent. PDMS is a common surface contamination that can mask surface chemistries and hinder material performance where it is dependent on this contaminated interface. It is known that PDMS contains a very mobile oligomeric fraction that readily diffuses across surfaces resulting in the contamination of mounted particulate samples before and during surface chemistry analysis. This makes it impossible to determine whether the PDMS has arisen from the analysis procedure or from the sample itself. A new sample preparation method is proposed where polymer microparticles are mounted on a poly (hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (pHEMA) polymer solution, which we compare with particles that have been mounted on adhesive discs using time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) and 3D OrbiSIMS analysis. Particles mounted on the pHEMA substrate results in a reduction of PDMS signal by 99.8% compared with microparticles mounted on adhesive discs. This illustrates how a simple, quick and inexpensive polymer solution can be used to adhere particles for analysis by ToF-SIMS, or other surface chemical analysis techniques such as X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), without introduction of large amounts of silicone contaminant.

中文翻译：

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一种用于表面分析的新粒子安装方法

由于需要将微粒安装在基板上进行分析，因此微粒的化学分析具有挑战性；双面胶带经常被使用（有时是导电的），但它通常涂有聚（二甲基硅氧烷）（PDMS），通常用作脱模剂。PDMS 是一种常见的表面污染物，它可以掩盖表面化学物质并阻碍材料性能，因为它依赖于这种受污染的界面。众所周知，PDMS 含有一种流动性很强的低聚部分，它很容易在表面上扩散，导致在表面化学分析之前和期间污染安装的颗粒样品。这使得无法确定 PDMS 是来自分析程序还是来自样品本身。提出了一种新的样品制备方法，其中将聚合物微粒安装在聚（甲基丙烯酸羟乙酯）（pHEMA）聚合物溶液上，我们将其与使用飞行时间二次离子质谱法（ToF- SIMS) 和 3D OrbiSIMS 分析。与安装在粘合盘上的微粒相比，安装在 pHEMA 基板上的粒子导致 PDMS 信号减少 99.8%。这说明了如何使用简单、快速且廉价的聚合物溶液来粘附颗粒，以通过 ToF-SIMS 或其他表面化学分析技术（如 X 射线光电子能谱 (XPS)）进行分析，而无需引入大量有机硅污染物。我们将其与使用飞行时间二次离子质谱 (ToF-SIMS) 和 3D OrbiSIMS 分析安装在粘合盘上的粒子进行比较。与安装在粘合盘上的微粒相比，安装在 pHEMA 基板上的粒子导致 PDMS 信号减少 99.8%。这说明了如何使用简单、快速且廉价的聚合物溶液来粘附颗粒，以通过 ToF-SIMS 或其他表面化学分析技术（如 X 射线光电子能谱 (XPS)）进行分析，而无需引入大量有机硅污染物。我们将其与使用飞行时间二次离子质谱 (ToF-SIMS) 和 3D OrbiSIMS 分析安装在粘合盘上的粒子进行比较。与安装在粘合盘上的微粒相比，安装在 pHEMA 基板上的粒子导致 PDMS 信号减少 99.8%。这说明了如何使用简单、快速且廉价的聚合物溶液来粘附颗粒，以通过 ToF-SIMS 或其他表面化学分析技术（如 X 射线光电子能谱 (XPS)）进行分析，而无需引入大量有机硅污染物。