Thermo Scientific Phenom ParticleX desktop SEM

Thermo Fisher Scientific has introduced the Thermo Scientific Phenom ParticleX, a versatile and intuitive desktop scanning electron microscope (SEM) that is designed to provide automotive suppliers and additive manufacturing companies with fast quality control analyses of materials used in development and production.

The device includes a broad range of automated SEM analyses to identify faults in materials or gauge the impact development and production changes have on a final product. By keeping quality control in-house, users can analyse materials up to 10 times faster than outsourcing, according to the company.

The automated system in the SEM offers multiple sample analyses, including chemical and morphological classification, outlier detection and identification of contamination, that allow users to validate produced goods against industry-approved standards. Fast validation time should enable manufacturing companies to meet customer commitments while requiring less inventory.

The product’s high-resolution imaging and chemical analysis capabilities are claimed to deliver more detailed failure analyses than is possible using optical microscopes. Additive manufacturers can characterise size distribution, particle homogeneity and foreign contaminants to evaluate the purity of metal particles at the microscale. Industrial manufacturers can use it to confirm whether components fulfil technical cleanliness specifications according to the VDA19 or ISO16232 standards. It also provides detailed feedback on the cleanliness or purity of final product without the manufacturer having to share this confidential and valuable data with third parties.