Surrey Ion Beam Centre

The Ion Beam Analysis DataFurnace is a computer code to extract elemental depth profiles from Rutherford backscattering and related ion beam analysis spectra. It is able to solve the inverse problem ("given the spectrum, what is the profile") automatically, without user intervention. It was first published in Applied Physics Letters (1997), and this paper has generated considerable interest, now (23rd October 2009) having 272 citations listed in the ISI Web of Knowledge index.

There is a full DataFurnace Review (September 2002: you can download this, 4MB PDF). A better version of this has been published on 7 April 2003 as a Topical Review (Jeynes et al, J.Phys.D : Appl.Phys. 36 (2003) R97-R126). This has 67 citations as of 23rd October 2009.

Version 9 is now released! This major new version includes a much more powerful computation engine (NDF) and a completely rewritten GUI (WiNDF). The new facilities are described at: N. P. Barradas and C. Jeynes, "Advanced physics & algorithms in the IBA DataFurnace", Nucl. Instrum Methods Phys. Res., Sect. B, 266(2008) 1875-1879.

Version 9 includes PIXE! Note that PIXE is now included (Pascual-Izarra C, Reis MA, Barradas NP, Simultaneous PIXE and RBS data analysis using Bayesian inference with the DataFurnace code, Nucl. Instrum. Methods Phys. Res., Sect. B, 249, 2006, 780-783), and critically compared with other X-ray fluorescence codes (both PIXE and SEM-EDS) by M. J. Bailey, S. Coe, D. M. Grant, G. W. Grime and C. Jeynes, Accurate determination of the Ca : P ratio in rough hydroxyapatite samples by SEM-EDS, PIXE and RBS – a comparative study, X-ray Spectrometry, 2009, DOI 10.1002/xrs.1171.

Version 9 is validated! Note also that the particle scattering modules in NDF and other IBA codes have been compared (N.P. Barradas et al, "Summary of 'IAEA intercomparison of IBA software' ", Nucl. Instrum. Methods Phys. Res., Sect. B, 266, 2008, 1338-1342)

The IBA DataFurnace is a fitting code, not a simulation code (although it has a simulator, of course). It was written by Nuno Barradas , with Chris Jeynes and Roger Webb . It has a core code to do the physics called NDF and written in Fortran, and a user interface code called WiNDF and written in Visual Basic. It is designed to facilitate accurate and automatic analysis of large batches of complex samples. The fits obtained are generally "perfect": the purpose is to extract all the information from the spectra (well, as much information as possible!). Channelling is not supported.

NDF ("Nuno's DataFurnace") makes fully automatic fits to experimental data, the user is only required to input the analytical conditions and the elements present. NDF uses the Simulated Annealing algorithm (hence the idea of a "Furnace").

WiNDF ("Windows NDF") is a Windows user interface to the NDF code. WiNDF enables you keep track of the many output files that are generated by the DataFurnace. It also includes comprehensive graphical spectral manipulation tools, a spectrum simulator and other utilities.

Find out more:

A comprehensive summary was presented at the Dresden IBA-14 Conference in July 1999 (this is not in the Proceedings: you can download it, 500kB IBA14 PDF).

DataFurnace Specifications	Executable code updates	Frequently Asked Questions	Other interesting links
Manuals	Stopping Powers used	Licensing information	Contacts
Examples	New Users - demo code	Nuclear Scattering Applet	Szilágyi's DEPTH code

New v9 installation: WiNDFv9.2.10 and NDFv9.2d (8 April 2009)

Last v8 code versions: WiNDFv7.1.4 (released June 2005), NDFv8.0b (released June 2005)

DataFurnace extracts depth profiles of non-crystalline samples automatically from RBS/EBS/ERD/NRA spectra using single or multiple spectra for the same sample collected either with multiple detectors or multiple techniques, or both. It is specifically designed to handle large quantities of data.

DataFurnace encourages the user to input chemical assumptions (that is, fitting in terms of molecules), and allows the user to specify the algebraic form of the profile for a particular element (NDFv7.8e and above). Depth profiles are output in nm if the constituent densities are specified. Thin film densities are notoriously uncertain, and being able to express the density of changing compositions as a mixture of molecular densities is as realistic as possible.

DataFurnace can correct the spectra for pulse pile up and can fit moderate sample roughness. It can use any of the accepted stopping power tables or can use user-supplied ones. It has He-H and He-D non-Rutherford cross-sections built in. Straggle is implemented. It can also handle high resolution data with depth dependent resolution calculated with Edit Szilágyi's DEPTH code or otherwise. All types of ERD are supported, including heavy ion range foil ERD and ToF-ERD even where the recoil signals from different elements overlap (data which is usually ignored!).

Double scattering (Barradas, Nucl.Instrum.Methods B 225 (3): 318-330 SEP 2004) is implemented (NDFv7.8g and above) (this is slow!).

The profile uncertainty can be evaluated reliably using Bayesian inference. Also, reverse calculations of the stopping power, or the non-Rutherford cross-section, can be made using Bayesian inference. Bayesian inference calculations are slow.

Full details of the calculation are available to the user together with publication quality graphics. All files are accessible for users to input into their favourite packages if they wish. The data formats of licenced users are supported.