Patent ID: 8927942
Filing Date: 2015-01-06
Classification: H01J

Abstract:
1. An ion source comprising: a chamber having at least one entry port and one exit aperture, an injection adapted to inject matter into the chamber through the entry port, wherein said matter comprises at least a first species, a tip having an apex located in the chamber, wherein the apex has a surface made of a metallic second species, wherein said first species and said metallic second species have different ionization voltages, a generator, adapted to apply a voltage to said tip to ionise species inside said chamber, thereby generating ions of said species, an extractor, adapted to move said ions out from the chamber through the exit aperture, a regulation system adapted to set operative conditions of the chamber, including at least a temperature and a pressure inside the chamber, and said voltage, to alternatively generate: in a first operative setting, ions from the gaseous first species, in a second operative setting, ions from the non-gaseous metallic second species.