A new design for an ultrahigh vacuum surface analysis chamber with optical scatter measurement capability

An ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) surface analysis chamber coupled with a visible light‐scattering apparatus is described. This combination of UHV surface analysis capabilities and bidirectional reflectance distribution function measurements permits investigation of effects of various surface treatments such as gas adsorption and ion bombardment on optical scatter. Stray light reflections from the UHV windows and components are temporally rejected by use of a picosecond pulsed laser source and synchronized, time‐gated detector. This system allows measurement of optical scatter levels in the range of 10−7 sr−1.