Absolute magnetometry at nanometer transverse spatial resolution: Holography of thin cobalt films in a scanning transmission electron microscope

Abstract The achievement of a fine electron probe for high-resolution imaging in scanning transmission electron microscopy requires technological developments, especially in electron optics. For this purpose, we developed a microscope with a fifth-order aberration corrector that operates at 300 kV. The contrast flat region in an experimental Ronchigram, which indicates the aberration-free angle, was expanded to 70 mrad. By using a probe with convergence angle of 40 mrad in the scanning transmission electron microscope at 300 kV, we attained the spatial resolution of 40.5 pm, which is the projected interatomic distance between Ga–Ga atomic columns of GaN observed along [212] direction.

Download Full-text

The spatial resolution of X-ray microanalysis in the scanning transmission electron microscope

Philosophical Magazine A ◽

10.1080/01418618008239347 ◽

1980 ◽

Vol 41 (5) ◽

pp. 761-775 ◽

Cited By ~ 39

Author(s):

P. Doig ◽

D. Lonsdale ◽

P. E. J. Flewitt

Keyword(s):

Electron Microscope ◽

Spatial Resolution ◽

Transmission Electron Microscope ◽

Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope ◽

X Ray ◽

Scanning Transmission Electron ◽

Transmission Electron ◽

Scanning Transmission

Download Full-text

Preliminary Results from the First Monochromated and Aberration Corrected 200-kV Field-Emission Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope

Microscopy and Microanalysis ◽

10.1017/s1431927606060697 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 12 (6) ◽

pp. 498-505 ◽

Cited By ~ 19

Author(s):

Thomas Walther ◽

Heiko Stegmann

Keyword(s):

Electron Microscope ◽

Spatial Resolution ◽

Transmission Electron Microscope ◽

Chromatic Aberration ◽

Beam Current ◽

Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope ◽

Scanning Transmission Electron ◽

Transmission Electron ◽

Scanning Transmission ◽

Aberration Corrected

Experimental results from the first monochromated and aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscope operated at 200 kV are described. The formation of an electron probe with a diameter of less than 0.2 nm at an energy width significantly under 0.3 eV and its planned application to the chemical analysis of nanometer-scale structures in materials science are described. Both energy and spatial resolution will benefit from this: The monochromator improves the energy resolution for studies of energy loss near edge structures. The Cs corrector allows formation of either a smaller probe for a given beam current or yields, at fixed probe size, an enhanced beam current density using a larger condenser aperture. We also point out another advantage of the combination of both components: Increasing the convergence angle by using larger condenser apertures in an aberration-corrected instrument will enlarge the undesirable chromatic focus spread. This in turn influences spatial resolution. The effect of polychromatic probe tails is proportional to the product of convergence angle, chromatic aberration constant, and energy spread. It can thus be compensated for in our new instrument by decreasing the energy width by the same factor as the beam convergence is increased to form a more intense probe. An alternative in future developments might be hardware correction of the chromatic aberration, which could eliminate the chromatic probe spread completely.

Download Full-text

A General Method for Spectrometer Design in the Scoff Approximation

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100092657 ◽

1976 ◽

Vol 34 ◽

pp. 538-539

Author(s):

J. R. Fields

Keyword(s):

Electron Microscope ◽

Transmission Electron Microscope ◽

Energy Analysis ◽

Incident Beam ◽

Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope ◽

Chemical Identification ◽

Scanning Transmission Electron ◽

Transmission Electron ◽

Scanning Transmission ◽

General Method

The energy analysis of electrons scattered by a specimen in a scanning transmission electron microscope can improve contrast as well as aid in chemical identification. In so far as energy analysis is useful, one would like to be able to design a spectrometer which is tailored to his particular needs. In our own case, we require a spectrometer which will accept a parallel incident beam and which will focus the electrons in both the median and perpendicular planes. In addition, since we intend to follow the spectrometer by a detector array rather than a single energy selecting slit, we need as great a dispersion as possible. Therefore, we would like to follow our spectrometer by a magnifying lens. Consequently, the line along which electrons of varying energy are dispersed must be normal to the direction of the central ray at the spectrometer exit.

Download Full-text

Resolution in the Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100095522 ◽

1972 ◽

Vol 30 ◽

pp. 454-455

Author(s):

M. G. R. Thomson

Keyword(s):

Electron Microscope ◽

Transmission Electron Microscope ◽

Spherical Aberration ◽

Signal To Noise Ratio ◽

Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope ◽

Dark Field ◽

Objective Lens ◽

Scanning Transmission Electron ◽

Transmission Electron ◽

Scanning Transmission

The variation of contrast and signal to noise ratio with change in detector solid angle in the high resolution scanning transmission electron microscope was discussed in an earlier paper. In that paper the conclusions were that the most favourable conditions for the imaging of isolated single heavy atoms were, using the notation in figure 1, either bright field phase contrast with β0⋍0.5 α0, or dark field with an annular detector subtending an angle between ao and effectively π/2.The microscope is represented simply by the model illustrated in figure 1, and the objective lens is characterised by its coefficient of spherical aberration Cs. All the results for the Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope (STEM) may with care be applied to the Conventional Electron Microscope (CEM). The object atom is represented as detailed in reference 2, except that ϕ(θ) is taken to be the constant ϕ(0) to simplify the integration. This is reasonable for θ ≤ 0.1 θ0, where 60 is the screening angle.

Download Full-text