Since its conception 15 years ago the field ion microscope has remained the only device capable of imaging a specimen in atomic detail. The unique feature of seeing point defects, dislocation cores and the atomic structure of grain boundaries and precipitates made the instrument a useful tool of physical metallurgy, particularly since various in-situ treatments and the capability of dissecting the specimen atom layer by atom layer with the help of controlled field evaporation made the bulk structure accessible. As different atoms look very much alike, a way of identifying them was needed. The most unambiguous identification, by mass spectrometry, has now been obtained with the atom-probe FIM. A single atom, as seen in the million times magnified image, can be chosen by the microscopist, picked up and sent through a mass spectrometer.
Single-atom-layer traps in a solid electrolyte for lithium batteries
