Carl Zeiss has launched the Auriga laser, a new advanced system combining the Auriga CrossBeam (FIB-SEM) workstation with the capabilities of a pulsed micro-focus laser for fast ablation of material.
The Auriga laser is useful for the examination of samples where the target structure is deeply buried under material layers. To gain access to the target structure this material needs to be removed – a procedure that is difficult to conduct with conventional techniques. Mechanical ablation and the cross-sectioning of large material volumes often causes deformations, making samples unsuitable for further examination. In contrast, applying a focused ion beam is inefficient, because the process is much too slow.