Diamond Liquid Cell
Beamline Setup:
The Diamond Liquid Cell is typically used in conjunction with either the Janis Cryostat (temperatures >190C), or the CLPT cryostat (temperatures down to 6K). Please also see the BES for those.
General Hazards and their mitigation:
Always use the lint-free material provided, with Isopropyl alcohol (for non-biological materials) to clean the diamond windows; if the solvent is not strong enough, Acetone can be used.
The volume to use is 0.064 μL/μm; i.e. for the 5 μm spacer, 0.3 μL – 0.4 μL should suffice. If more than 0.4 μL is used with the 5 μm spacer, the windows may crack when the cell is assembled; it will take a minimum of 2-3 days to fix, if materials are available.
Samples:
Clean the metal parts and O-ring thoroughly with the solvent before and after use, and when swapping samples;
There is also a high pressure N2(g) ‘gun’ to assist in removing any fibres or particles inside and outside the cell.
Use the 0-2.5 μL Eppendorf pipette for small volumes, and the 0-10 μL pipette for larger volumes (please ask your support personnel if you need even larger volumes to be transferred); place your sample in the middle of the top-hat window.
Use the high-pressure N2 to clean the outside areas of the windows
Place the cell on the cryostat sample holder such that the flat side lies on the sample holder.
It is recommended to talk to your beamline scientist about the best approach for your samples.
Users must continue to fill in the sample hazard matrices in the EA form.
Beamline: THz
Setup: Diamond Liquid Cell
This document is intended to aid experimental setup and completion of the EA form. Users will follow any setup and guidelines contained within this document.
Spills:
Remove the sample from the diamond window and clean the surface of the diamond window and the surrounding plate area with a suitable solvent.
Disposal:
Samples should be returned to your facility and disposed of there. Discuss anything else with the beamline scientist.
Safe shutdown procedure:
“in the event of an evacuation of the facility / incident, what steps should be taken to make the equipment safe” ?
Follow any instructions for the type of cryostat you are using.
Close the beamline gate valves.