Enhancing AdAPTS: Fast Field Evaporation Simulation with Parametric Local Electrodes for Atom Probe Tomography

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Abstract:

Atom probe tomography (APT) is a powerful technique for analyzing the composition of materials at the atomic level. However, no reconstruction method currently fully capitalizes on the spatial resolution potential of APT instrumentation. A model of field evaporation, efficiently and accurately describing ion trajectories, remains essential for reconstruction. To address this, we developed AdAPTS, a simulation tool that improves the efficiency of modeling individual evaporations compared to TAPSim. Both tools, however, lack a local electrode model, which influences ion trajectories. Directly incorporating a local electrode into the finite element mesh hinders simulation speed and memory efficiency. To overcome this, we introduce a local electrode feature in AdAPTS that leverages the superposition principle by projecting a solution of the field emitted by the local electrode onto a mesh of the experimental domain, resulting in constant computational overhead instead of recalculating the total electrostatic field in each iteration. The parametric definition of local electrodes allows for precise modeling of electrode geometries, providing a flexible framework for electrode design and potentially enabling more accurate 3D reconstruction. Future work will focus on integrating additional physical models in AdAPTS to expand its capabilities across diverse material systems.

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