Evaluation of practical sensitivity and useful ion yield for uranium detection by secondary ion mass spectrometry

An inter-laboratory round robin exercise on the sensitivity of SIMS instruments has been performed using metallic uranium and uranium oxide particles as test samples. The practical sensitivity and useful ion yield were measured as comparison parameters. The inter-laboratory standard deviation in the determination of the practical sensitivity was ∼37%: that of useful ion yield ∼28%. Determination of practical sensitivity and useful ion yield using standard samples on a daily or weekly basis is a good method for optimizing the measurement system and establishing quality control of the SIMS measurements.