Apr 24 2013
The launch of VG Scienta's new VacuTRAN™ is a major game-changing event for the Plastic Electronics industry, enabling WVTR measurement of barrier layers to better than 10-6 g/m2/day and simultaneous O2 permeation to better than 10-3 cm3/m2/day.
VG Scienta's new VacuTRAN is an innovative, time-saving, vacuum-enabled membrane permeation measurement instrument that the company says 'heralds the next generation of ultra-sensitive membrane transmission measurement by advancing detection levels by a factor of 50-100 compared with the one-part-in-ten-thousand measurement capability of the current generation of instruments.'
The advances in time-saving performance and higher sensitivity are significant, with this breakthrough instrument featuring not only a World first in water vapour transmission rate (WVTR) measurement that exceeds the specification requirements, but the welcome reduction in results turnaround to days rather than weeks or months.
A step change in order of magnitude
VacuTRAN is a step change in order of magnitude for developers and manufacturers involved in ultra-high barrier layer research because until now there has been no commercially available instrument that can measure WVTR to these very low levels nor measure WVTR and OTR simultaneously. This is of particular relevance to the OLEDs (Organic Light Emitting Displays), OPVs (Organic Photovoltaic devices) and OFT (Organic Fieldeffect Transistor) device markets in the Plastic Electronics industry.
Vacuum-enabled multiple species detection
VG Scienta says that VacuTRAN's genuine quantum leap in barrier layer measurement to better than one millionth of a gram per square meter per day is achieved by combining the company's expertise in vacuum-based technology with state-of-the-art mass spectrometry and ultra-clean gas handling together with in-built moisture calibration designed to enable measurement traceability to national standards.
The mass spectrometer detector yields ultra-high sensitivity equivalent to ppt levels, while permitting simultaneous multiple species detection, e.g. moisture and oxygen, and the all-metal sealed system ensures no leakage of potentially interfering species from the ambient environment.
The instrument uses D2O in place of H2O to differentiate from environmental moisture and enable the measurement cycle to commence almost immediately the barrier layer sample is loaded into the instrument. D2O test gas and calibration gases are generated in situ allowing for traceability of calibration back to national standards and a low cost of ownership.
Answering the needs of industry
VG Scienta believes that the significantly enhanced sensitivity of VacuTRAN together with its multi-species detection capability will allow researchers in the field to solve some of the fundamental problems relating to ultra-barrier layer performance, such as:
How relevant are measurements at almost 100 percent saturation and at high temperature when devices typically operate under ambient conditions?
How affected is O2 permeation by saturation levels of moisture and vice versa?
These and other key questions can now be addressed quickly in comparison with the current industry norm for instrumentation whose measurements can often take months to complete.
Rapid turnaround measurement testing service
The instrument accommodates membrane sample sizes of 80mm square as standard, but other sizes can be accommodated on request. VG Scienta is also offering an ultra-barrier layer measurement testing service with typical turnaround times anticipated to be the order of two weeks dependant on demand.
For product information
VG Scienta
Maunsell Rd, St Leonards-on-Sea,
East Sussex, TN38 9NN, UK
Tel: +44 (0)1424 851291
Fax: + 44 (0)1424 851489
Email: [email protected]
www. http://www.vgs-plastic-electronics.com
For press release information 01273 719960 [email protected]