Prober Shuttle PS8e
A compact, fully integrated nanoprobing system — now encoded for automatic probe pre-alignment at the 3 nm node and beyond.
Encoded on all 27 axes#
The PS8e is the encoded evolution of Kleindiek’s 140 mm Prober Shuttle platform. Every one of its 27 axes of motion (the three axes on up to eight ultra-flat MM4 manipulators, plus the three-axis substage) now carries a positional encoder, so the system always knows exactly where each probe sits. A full park-and-restore cycle across all eight probes and the substage completes in about one minute, and a list of user-definable store points lets you re-address the same sample location on demand instead of re-hunting for it.
Low-kV, start to finish#
That automation is what moves the ceiling from 7 nm on the standard PS8 to 5 nm and beyond on the PS8e. Locating and landing eight probes by eye forces acceleration voltages high enough to actually see the tips — voltages that also alter the device you’re trying to characterize. Encoded pre-alignment removes that trade-off: the complete probing workflow, from initial park to the final I–V sweep, runs at low beam energy without hand-guiding each tip, so irradiation-induced changes to the sample stay minimal.
The shuttle pairs with the Advanced Probing Tools suite, including the Live Contact Tester and Electron-Beam-Induced-Current (EBIC/EBAC) imaging modules.
Built for the most advanced nodes#
Noise of just 20 fA at 1 Hz and sub-0.02 nm linear resolution on every axis keep the PS8e suitable for the small currents native to advanced-node devices. Stand-alone electronics sit in a 19-inch rack outside the chamber and out of the operator’s sightline, with the entire system controlled from the APT UI over clean cabling from flange to rack. Non-magnetic and lightweight, the platform drops onto your existing sample stage and tilts to the FIB angle for circuit-edit and delayering work.
Gallery
Three probes closing in on a single contact — 100 nm scale bar. 
Output and transfer characteristics acquired on-chip with the PS8e, overlaid on the landed probes.
Technical data
Overview
- Diameter
- 140 mm
- Total height
- 10 mm
- Max. sample area
- 20 × 20 mm
- Max. sample height
- 20 mm
- Weight
- 200 g + SEM/FIB dovetail
- Manipulators
- up to 8 × MM4
- Encoded axes
- 27 (all)
Substage
- Travel — X / Y
- 9 mm
- Travel — Z
- 0.7 mm
Motion (per manipulator)
- Range — A (left/right)
- 5 mm
- Range — B (rotation)
- 90°
- Range — C (in/out)
- 5 mm
- Resolution — A / C
- < 0.02 nm
- Resolution — B
- < 0.5 nm
- Max. velocity
- up to 1 mm/s
- Drift
- < 1 nm/min
Electrical
- Max. voltage
- 100 V
- Max. current
- 100 mA
- Noise
- 20 fA @ 1 Hz
- Insulation leakage — probes
- < 50 fA/V
- Insulation leakage — sample
- < 150 fA/V
- Signal conductor resistance
- < 5 Ω
See it run
Advantages
Encoded & automatic
- Positional encoders on all 27 axes, so the system always knows where every probe sits
- Park and restore all eight probes and the substage in about one minute
- User-definable store points for repeatable, re-addressable sample locations
Rated for the leading edge
- Complete probing workflow runs at low acceleration voltage, minimizing beam-induced changes to the device under test
- Rated for the 5 nm node and beyond, against 7 nm on the manual PS8
- Sub-0.02 nm linear resolution and 20 fA noise at 1 Hz keep advanced-node signals readable
Fast & flexible
- Every manipulator's Z drive swings up 90° for direct sample access and tool-free tip changes
- Non-magnetic design for use with immersion lenses
- Tilts to the FIB angle for circuit-edit and delayering work
Easy to integrate
- Plug-and-play, modular components on a lightweight, retrofit-ready platform
- Load-lock compatible; electronics rack stays outside the operator's sightline
- Controlled entirely from the APT UI, with clean cable management from flange to rack
Application articles
What is nanoprobing?
How in-situ probing measures the electrical behaviour of individual transistors at the most advanced nodes.
Current imaging for failure analysis
Electron-beam current-imaging techniques that localize faults before you probe.
Nanoprobing in the microscope
In-situ nanoprobing and failure analysis, filmed inside the SEM, from probe landing to live I–V curves.
Related products & accessories
Prober Shuttle PS8
High-precision in-situ electrical nanoprobing with up to eight ultra-flat MM4 manipulators — for advanced-node failure analysis.
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Prober Shuttle PS4
A compact two- or four-probe nanoprobing system for in-situ electrical characterization at advanced nodes.
View productTalk to an application engineer
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