Design and characterization of Ion sources for CHIP-TRAP

At Central Michigan University, we are developing a high-precision Penning trap mass spectrometer (CHIP-TRAP) for precise mass measurements with stable and long-lived isotopes. Ions will be produced using external ion sources and then transported to the Penning trap at low energy using electrostatic ion optics. Ion sources that will be utilized with CHIP-TRAP include a laser ablation ion source (LAS) that has already been commissioned, and a low current Penning ion trap (PIT) source that is currently being developed. The LAS enables ion production from solid targets via ablation and ionization with a high-powered laser pulse. The PIT source is a novel Penning ionization gauge (PIG) type source, consisting of a 0.55 T NdFeB ring magnet, cylindrical Penning trap, and low current thermal electron emitter that enables ion production via electron impact ionization of gaseous samples. For both ion sources, small bunches of ∼100 – 1000 ions can be produced from a minimal sample of source material. The ion bunches are then transported along the CHIP-TRAP beamline, where time-of-flight mass filtering can be performed before they are captured in the CHIP-TRAP Penning traps.