BACKGROUND:
Notice is hereby given by the University of Ottawa of the intent to enter into a contract with ProSpect Scientific Inc. to procure a Renishaw Modular Raman Spectrometer System.
PROCESS;
Suppliers who consider their equipment functional, successfully tested, readily available and fully compliant to the ACAN minimum requirements may submit in writing a statement of specifications to the contact person identified in this Notice, on or before the closing date of this Notice. In the statement of specifications, the supplier must unequivocally demonstrate how their equipment, at minimum, equals, or exceeds the stated requirements.
If no other supplier submits a statement of specifications, on or before the closing date of this Notice, the competitive requirements of the University of Ottawa will be considered having been met.
Following notification to suppliers not successful in unequivocally demonstrating that their statement of specifications equals or exceeds the requirements set out in this Notice, the contract may then be awarded to the pre-identified
supplier.
Date of issue: August 4, 2022
Closing Date: August 29, 2022 at 3:00:00 P.M. Eastern Standard Time
INTENDED USE:
The system will facilitate the project “Center for Hybrid Interfaces and Intelligent Thin-Films (HIIT)” to develop technologies based on thin films and interfaces. The project related to this system looks to the characterization of thin film semiconductors to provide better understanding of device operation and provide insight into improved manufacturing to optimize device performance. Part of the research objectives, the HIIT needs to characterize thin film chemical composition distribution as well as morphological characterization such as crystal domain size and orientation. Therefore, the system needs to provide accurate and reliable measurements of sensitive samples and contaminants in a variety of different Raman-active materials. This characterization will provide critical information related to how the film is interacting with analytes and building structure property relationships between fabrication parameters and resulting thin film composition necessary for optimizing sensors and other thin film electronics.
The system will be installed at the University of Ottawa, and available to users from several research groups. The system must be an automated, complete system that is able to be operated for setup, heating and in situ analysis of thin films operating at high temperatures under inert or humid atmosphere. Training and technical support for this combined instrument is essential to ensure that the research objectives related to this system are realized.
FUNCTIONALITY:
The equipment must conform to the following Minimum Requirements:
The system consists of a Raman microscope with 4 excitation wavelengths:
1. Allow continuous wavelength scanning of all wavelengths of a spectrum across all the pixels of the CCD to measure Raman and fluorescence spectra without the need to step and stitch spectral segments and to eliminate post collection correction of fluorescence bleaching. Minimum pixel-to-pixel CCD noise is required for high accuracy measurements.
- Large wavelength window must be obtained quickly using any grating. The use of low-resolution gratings to provide the spectrum in a single wavelength is not acceptable. This compromises spectral resolution as it is not ideal for Raman spectra that require ~ 4-6 cm-1 or better spectral resolution. Low resolution gratings fail to match the grating line spacing to the wavelengths being measured.
- We require a single readout per reported wavelength to reduce signal noise. Moving the spectrum across the multichannel detector and reading out the full spectrum after move is not acceptable.
2. Have an optical system where all wavelength dependent optics (lenses, Rayleigh filters and gratings for example) are user exchangeable and on precision kinematic mounts such that changes can be made that do not require the use of tools or user realignment and calibration.
- This will allow users to exchange/install an unlimited number of Rayleigh filters (4 simultaneously) and gratings (2 simultaneously)
- This will allow users to upgrade the instrument on-site at a future time to allow UV Raman spectroscopy with the purchase of a UV compatible spectrometer lens set.
3. Provide computer-controlled changes to the laser focus spot size, without moving the sample from best white light focus, that can (1) expand the laser focus symmetrically (reducing the instantaneous laser energy density) and (2) extend the focus from point illumination to a line focus aligned to the slit axis. Raster scanning a point focus laser, for a near equivalent effect, is insufficient to meet the need to lower the instantaneous energy density to prevent damage to our sensitive samples.
- A Motorized beam expander is required to defocus the laser without moving the sample and without changing the white light focus. The beam expander improves the match of the laser beam diameter to the size of the back aperture of the microscope objective to achieve the best focus. This is important for compatibility with a large selection of lasers, not just the lasers offered by the spectrometer manufacturer.
- A Line focus option is needed to change a point focus to a line focus to reduce the instantaneous laser beam density on samples that are prone to degradation under high laser energy density conditions. This has been demonstrated to be very important for carbon samples that are prone to photo damage. By aligning the line focus to the slit, all the Raman scattered light is collected thereby maintaining a high signal to noise ratio.
- Line focus illumination also allows for fast, large area Raman mapping using a reduced laser beam energy density.
4. Ability to measure confocal Raman spectra without the use of a confocal pinhole, as pinholes can be difficult to align. Thus, the system must maintain full confocal performance throughout the UV-visible range, without the need for realignment or refocusing of the pinhole(s).
5. Allow SORS (Spatially offset Raman spectroscopy) Raman collection with computer control shift of the excitation laser position and offset of the spectrometer apertures with computer control. This technique allows a material to be analyzed through millimeters of obstructing material. It is used to probe sub-layers in coatings and materials inside containers.
6. The ability to maintain focus automatically in real time during Raman data collection and white-light viewing. Alternate techniques that require a pre-scan are not acceptable as they are not appropriate for dynamically changing samples, these techniques are not simultaneous nor are they independent.
- Focus tracking makes it easy to study samples with uneven, curved or rough surfaces. Which allows us to maintain focus during dynamic measurements, such as sample heating/cooling experiments and during very long measurements when the environmental conditions are varying.
- To obtain automatic, simultaneous and independent focus a combination of precise vertical motion control of the sample stage with optical technology that uses the same Raman laser which eliminates any spectral interference or artefacts that could result if using a second/different wavelength for the auto-focus. It needs to work in both whitelight video viewing and Raman acquisition modes. Focus must be maintained in real-time as the sample:
i. is moved under user command (using trackball)
ii. is scanned during Raman data collection
iii. expands or contracts (for example because of temperature or humidity changes)
7. Must allow upgrade to 4 simultaneous mounted detectors
8. Must have the ability to integrate the Raman microscope to several different commercially available AFM’s
9. Must have the ability to integrate the Raman microscope to several different commercially available SEM’s
10. Must have the ability to add additional microscopes to the system such as a free space microscope or an inverted microscope.
Justification of Pre-Selected Supplier:
Supplier: ProSpect Scientific Inc. (Renishaw)
Justification:
- The system will be used to study minor and major reactions on thin film surfaces in large wavelength coverage which are difficult to identify. Multichannel detector features provides a clean baseline spectra without the need for post modification of spectra. Other system providers use a “scan and stitch” approach which leads to lost details where the two scans are stitched together. These details are critical to fully characterizing our sensors and thin film interactions. Calibration of the stitching is possible but requires time and experience technical support. Simple operation and feature to eliminate the need for constant calibration and technical support is required.
- The system will be used to study various materials from dyes to nanotubes which all have different requirements related to excitation and spectra. Being able to quickly change filters and gratings without technical support and without specialized tools or expertise is critical to progressing in all research projects in a timely fashion.
- The system will be used to explore the same location on a film under different laser conditions and after different treatments to properly map the composition and changes of our film. Computer-controlled changes to the laser focus spot size without moving the sample from best white light focus, is necessary to expand the laser focus symmetrically while reducing the instantaneous laser energy density (reducing possibility for sample degradation) and improve focus time. Other systems that require physically moving the sample to change focus is not possible in our custom chambers for characterizing the sensors.
- The system will be used to characterize sensors during operation and to characterize the chemical reactions taking place at the surface it is critical to be able the scan large wavelengths continuously without needing to stop, realign and refocus the microscope. Continuous characterization during the sensing process is required for our research projects.
- SORS is necessary to characterize air sensitive films that are coated by an encapsulation layer. Using SORS means Raman can be performed through the encapsulation layer on the sensitive layer beneath.
- It is necessary to be able to characterize sensors in-situ and monitor surface reaction while the reaction is taking place not simply after. The fact that no additional laser is required to focus is also necessary to avoid interference of the second laser in the detector and to provide good reliable data.
University Contact:
Charles Gosselin
Approvisionneur principal, recherche | Senior Procurement Officer, Research
Strategic Project Management Group (SPMG) | Procurement Services
Université d'Ottawa | University of Ottawa
550 Cumberland (L315), Ottawa, ON K1N 6N8
Tél. | Tel.: 613-562-5800 Ext.: 1943
cgossel2@uottawa.ca
