Design and fabrication of a fume extractor controller for pulsed laser deposition of thin films (#1584)

Authors

Hirschmann, Juan Ignacio

Silveyra, Josefina María

Conde Garrido, Juan Manuel

Abstract

The deposition of thin films by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) is performed inside a deposition chamber. When the chamber is opened to change substrates and/or targets, the material deposited on the inner walls of the chamber releases vapors that are toxic in high concentrations. In order to improve user safety and to optimize time and resources, we fabricated a low-cost fume extraction system based on a domestic vacuum cleaner motor. The system, which proved to achieve an efficient flow rate and to work at acceptable temperature and noise levels, has been operational at the INTECIN Laser Ablation Laboratory since 2021. In this work we present a controller of the vapor extraction system. It uses an Arduino Nano development board, with which it provides assistance to the user through an interactive menu on an LCD display and a push button. It electronically controls the switching on and off of the extractor motor and the acoustic box coolers. It has protection sensors: a liquid sensor to detect possible water leaks from the cooling system, two cooler failure sensors, and a digital temperature sensor to stop the extractor motor when high temperatures are reached. It provides warning indications through the display, a buzzer and a series of LED lights.