Patent ID: 8651048

Claim:
A system for depositing or patterning one or more ions, ionized nanoclusters, metal-ligand complexes, polymers, biopolymers, or any combinations thereof by soft-landing (SL) comprising: a four-way and reducing cross housing with one or more standard conflat (CF) flanges; a laser source generating a laser pulse or a radiation for an ionization of a target, a sample, a composition, or any combinations thereof; a SL chamber housed in the four-way and reducing cross housing wherein the chamber comprises: an opening or a quartz view-port attached to the four-way and reducing cross, wherein the laser pulse or the radiation enters the chamber through the opening or the view-port; and a linear/rotational feed through line directly opposite the opening or the view-port, wherein the feed through line is inline with the incident radiation or pulse and is attached directly to the sample, a sample holder, or the target, wherein an electric potential can be optionally applied to the sample or the target supported by a fabricated porcelain or a machineable glass ceramic; a drift tube for separating and thermalizing the one or more ions by collisions with a high pressure inert bath gas or gas mixture contained in the drift tube, wherein an electric potential can be applied to the drift tube, wherein the drift tube comprises: one or more steel rings coupled by a series of vacuum resistors; one or more thread rods isolated by spacers attached to two outer guard rings; and one or more spacers placed in between the steel rings, wherein the spacers comprise sapphire spheres; two split rings placed at the two ends of the drift tube, for directing an ion cluster beam emanating from the drift tube, wherein a pulsed voltage can be applied to the split rings; a high voltage power supply for powering the drift tube, generating an electric field for the migration of the one or more ions, and providing a voltage to a first half of the split rings at one end of the drift tube, wherein the voltage is either a positive voltage or a negative voltage selected depending on a type of ion being analyzed; a pulsing circuit for providing either a lower positive or a lower negative pulsed voltage in comparison to the drift tube voltage to a second half of split rings at an other end of the drift tube for a specified period of time, wherein the period of time encompasses a desired ion peak, wherein the pulsing circuit comprises: an optocoupler switch activated by one or more light emitting diodes (LEDs) and an integrated circuit (IC) metaloxide-semiconductor field effect transistor driver; a rail system to hold and adjust a detector that comprises a Faraday plate connected to a preamp and an oscilloscope, and a landing surface for depositing or patterning the one or more ions, wherein the detector monitors the ion beam and collects a drift tube spectra; a quick door (CF) flange to remove or replace the detector, the landing surface, and the sample; and a rotary vane rough pump for allowing the system to attain a low pressure in a relatively short time.