Combination of a Knudsen effusion cell with a quartz crystal microbalance: In situ measurement of molecular evaporation rates with a fully functional deposition source

We describe a straightforward, reliable, and inexpensive design of a Knudsen type molecular effusion cell capable of measuring molecular evaporation rates in situ. This is accomplished by means of a quartz crystal microbalance integrated into the shutter of the effusion cell. The presented layout facilitates both the measurement of effusion rates under ultrahigh vacuum conditions without the need for a separate experimental setup and the growth of surface supported molecular layers and nanostructures. As an important prerequisite for reproducible deposition of molecular films with defined coverages ranging from submonolayers up to multilayers, the Knudsen cell features a stable deposition rate for crucible temperatures between 50 and 500 °C. Experimental determination of deposition rates for different crucible temperatures allows to approximate sublimation enthalpies of the evaporant based on the Clausius-Clapeyron equation.