Sample preparing device and sample posture shifting method

1. A sample preparing device comprising:

a sample stage having a surface for supporting a sample and being mounted to undergo rotation about at least one rotation axis; and

a manipulator mounted to undergo rotation about a manipulator rotation axis independently of the sample stage, the manipulator being disposed relative to the sample stage so that an angle between the manipulator rotation axis and the surface of the sample stage is in the range of 0 to 45 degrees, the manipulator being configured to support a sample piece of the sample at a position substantially overlapping with the manipulator rotation axis;

wherein the sample stage is operable to undergo a rotation operation to bring a preselected direction of the sample piece into coincidence with an intersection line between a plane formed by a surface of the sample piece and a conical side plane obtained by rotating, around the manipulator rotation axis of the manipulator, a line segment which is vertical to the surface of the sample piece and of which one end corresponds to an intersection of the surface of the sample and the manipulator rotation axis; and

wherein the manipulator is operable to undergo a rotation operation to rotate the sample piece to a preselected position in the state in which the manipulator supports the sample piece and the preselected direction of the sample piece coincides with the intersection line.

2. A sample preparing device according to claim 1 ; wherein the sample stage has a sample piece table for supporting the sample piece in a state in which the sample piece extends in a direction upright with respect to the surface of the sample stage.

3. The A sample preparing device according to claim 2 ;

wherein the sample piece is a thin sample portion of the sample for a transmission electron microscope for cross-section observation or a thin sample portion of the sample for a transmission electron microscope prior to final processing of the sample;

wherein the preselected direction of the sample piece is a horizontal direction parallel to an observing cross section of the sample piece;

wherein the sample piece table extends upright with respect to the surface of the sample stage; and

wherein the sample piece is configured to be supported by the sample piece table in a posture in which the sample piece is rotated by 90 degrees around a line normal to the observing cross section.

4. A sample preparing device according to claim 2 ;

wherein the sample piece is a thin sample portion of the sample for an electron microscope for cross section observation or a thin sample for an electron microscope prior to final processing of the sample;

wherein during a rotation operation, the manipulator controls a position of the sample piece such that an observing cross section of the sample piece becomes horizontal by setting a direction of a line normal to the observing cross section as the preselected direction of the sample piece; and

the sample piece table is mounted horizontally with respect to the surface of the sample stage, the sample stage being configured to undergo a rotation operation about the at least one rotation axis to rotate the sample piece table to a preselected position with respect to the sample piece, the sample piece being supported by the sample piece table while the sample piece table is at the preselected position such that an arbitrary direction of the observing cross section of the sample piece extends in the direction upright with respect to the surface of the sample stage.

5. A sample preparing device according to claim 2 ;

wherein the sample piece is a thin sample portion of the sample for a transmission electron microscope for plane observation or a thin sample portion of the sample for a transmission electron microscope prior to final processing of the sample; and

wherein the sample piece table is mounted vertically with respect to the surface of the sample stage for supporting the sample piece so that a horizontal plane of the sample piece extends in the direction upright with respect to the surface of the sample stage.

6. A sample preparing device according to claim 3 ; further comprising means for automatically rotating the sample stage in accordance with the preselected direction of the sample piece to position the surface of the sample stage at one of the angles in the range of 0 to 45 degrees relative to the manipulator rotation axis.

7. A method of shifting a sample posture, the method comprising:

providing a sample stage having a surface for supporting a sample and being operable to undergo a rotation operation about at least one rotation axis;

providing a manipulator operable to undergo rotation about a manipulator rotation axis independently of the sample stage, the manipulator being disposed relative to the sample stage so that an angle between the manipulator rotation axis and the surface of the sample stage is in the range of 0 to 45 degrees, the manipulator being configured to support a sample piece of the sample at a position substantially overlapping with the manipulator rotation axis;

operating the sample stage so that a preselected direction of the sample piece is brought into coincidence with an intersection line between a plane formed by a surface of the sample piece and a conical side plane obtained by rotating, around the manipulator rotation axis of the manipulator, a line segment which is vertical to the surface of the sample piece and of which one end corresponds to an intersection of the surface of the sample and the manipulator rotation axis;

operating the manipulator to support the sample piece; and

operating the manipulator to rotate the sample piece to a preselected position in the state in which the manipulator supports the sample piece and the preselected direction of the sample piece coincides with the intersection line.

8. A sample preparing device according to claim 1 ; wherein the preselected direction is a longitudinal direction of the sample piece.

9. A sample preparing device according to claim 1 ; wherein the sample stage has a sample piece table corresponding to the preselected position of the sample piece.

10. A sample preparing device according to claim 1 ; wherein the angle between the manipulator rotation axis and the surface of the sample stage is 20 degrees.

11. A method according to claim 7 ; wherein the preselected direction is a longitudinal direction of the sample piece.

12. A method according to claim 7 ; wherein the sample stage has a sample piece table corresponding to the preselected position of the sample piece.

13. A method according to claim 7 ; wherein the angle between the manipulator rotation axis and the surface of the sample stage is 20 degrees.

14. A sample preparing device comprising:

a sample stage that supports a sample having a sample piece, the sample stage being mounted to undergo rotation about a first rotation axis to bring a preselected direction of the sample piece into coincidence with an intersection line between first and second planes, the first plane being formed by a surface of the sample piece; and

a manipulator configured to hold the sample piece and mounted to undergo rotation about a second rotation axis independently of the sample stage to rotate the sample piece to a preselected position in the state in which the preselected direction of the sample piece coincides with the intersection line, the manipulator being disposed relative to the sample stage so that an angle between the second rotation axis and the surface of the sample is in the range of 0° to 45°, the second plane corresponding to a plane obtained by rotating around the second rotation axis a line segment which is vertical to the surface of the sample and of which one end corresponds to an intersection between the surface of the sample and the second rotation axis.

15. A sample preparing device according to claim 14 ; wherein the preselected direction is a longitudinal direction of the sample piece.

16. A sample preparing device according to claim 14 ; wherein the sample stage has a sample piece table corresponding to the preselected position of the sample piece.

17. A sample preparing device according to claim 14 ; wherein the sample stage has a sample piece table for supporting the sample piece vertically with respect to the surface of the sample stage.

18. A sample preparing device according to claim 17 ; wherein the sample piece is a thin sample portion of the sample for a transmission electron microscope for observing a cross section of the thin sample portion; wherein the preselected direction of the sample piece is a horizontal direction parallel to an observing direction of the cross section of the sample piece; wherein the sample piece table is mounted vertically with respect to the surface of the sample stage; and wherein the sample piece is configured to be supported by the sample piece table with an orientation in which the sample piece is rotated by 90 degrees around a line normal to the observing direction of the cross section of the sample piece.

19. A sample preparing device according to claim 17 ; wherein the sample piece is a thin sample portion of the sample for an electron microscope for observing a cross section of the thin sample portion; wherein during a rotation operation, the manipulator controls a position of the sample piece such that an observing direction of the cross section of the sample piece becomes horizontal by setting a direction of a line normal to the observing direction as the preselected direction of the sample piece; and wherein the sample piece table is mounted horizontally with respect to the surface of the sample stage, the sample stage being configured to undergo a rotation operation about the first rotation axis to rotate the sample piece table to a preselected position with respect to the sample piece, and the sample piece being supported by the sample piece table while the sample piece table is at the preselected position such that the observing direction extends in the direction upright with respect to the surface of the sample stage.

20. A sample preparing device according to claim 17 ; wherein the sample piece is a thin sample portion of the sample for a transmission electron microscope for observing a plane of the thin sample portion; wherein the sample piece table is mounted vertically with respect to the surface of the sample stage for supporting the sample piece so that a horizontal plane of the sample piece extends in the direction upright with respect to the surface of the sample stage.