High-resolution structure determination by ALCHEMI

ALCHEMI (Atom Location by CHanneling Enhanced Microanalysis) enables the site occupancy of atoms in single crystals to be determined. In this article the fundamentals of the method for both EDS and EELS will be discussed. Unlike HRTEM, ALCHEMI does not place stringent resolution requirements on the microscope and, because EDS clearly distinguishes between elements of similar atomic number, it can offer some advantages over HRTEM. It does however, place certain constraints on the crystal. These constraints are: a) the sites of interest must lie on alternate crystallographic planes, b) the projected charge density on the alternate planes must be significantly different, and c) there must be at least one atomic species that lies solely on one of the planes.An electron beam incident on a crystal undergoes elastic scattering; in reciprocal space this is seen as a diffraction pattern and in real space this is a modulation of the electron current across the unit cell. When diffraction is strong (i.e., when the crystal is oriented near to the Bragg angle of a low-order reflection) the electron current at one point in the unit cell will differ significantly from that at another point.

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Cathodoluminescence of Catalyst Crystallites

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100055667 ◽

1982 ◽

Vol 40 ◽

pp. 664-665

Author(s):

E.D. Boyes ◽

P.L. Gai ◽

D.B. Darby ◽

C. Warwick

Keyword(s):

Defect Density ◽

Chemical Properties ◽

Operating Conditions ◽

Semiconductor Materials ◽

Environmental Cell ◽

High Resolution Structure ◽

Commercially Important ◽

Crystallographic Defects ◽

Resolution Structure

The extended crystallographic defects introduced into some oxide catalysts under operating conditions may be a consequence and accommodation of the changes produced by the catalytic activity, rather than always being the origin of the reactivity. Operation without such defects has been established for the commercially important tellurium molybdate system. in addition it is clear that the point defect density and the electronic structure can both have a significant influence on the chemical properties and hence on the effectiveness (activity and selectivity) of the material as a catalyst. SEM/probe techniques more commonly applied to semiconductor materials, have been investigated to supplement the information obtained from in-situ environmental cell HVEM, ultra-high resolution structure imaging and more conventional AEM and EPMA chemical microanalysis.

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Zone-axis ALCHEMI for the rapid assessment of site occupancies in garnets

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100144905 ◽

1986 ◽

Vol 44 ◽

pp. 706-707

Author(s):

M.T. Otten ◽

P.R. Buseck

Keyword(s):

Single Crystals ◽

Rapid Assessment ◽

Site Occupancy ◽

Zone Axis ◽

Synthetic Compounds ◽

X Ray ◽

Large Group ◽

Crystallographic Planes

ALCHEMI (Atom Location by CHannelling-Enhanced Microanalysis) is a TEM technique for determining site occupancies in single crystals. The method uses the channelling of incident electrons along specific crystallographic planes. This channelling results in enhanced x-ray emission from the atoms on those planes, thereby providing the required site-occupancy information. ALCHEMI has been applied with success to spinel, olivine and feldspar. For the garnets, which form a large group of important minerals and synthetic compounds, the channelling effect is weaker, and significant results are more difficult to obtain. It was found, however, that the channelling effect is pronounced for low-index zone-axis orientations, yielding a method for assessing site occupancies that is rapid and easy to perform.

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Site occupancy in gamma alumina

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100165732 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 54 ◽

pp. 654-655

Author(s):

C. A. Bateman ◽

A.Z. Ringwelski ◽

R.W. Broach

Keyword(s):

Spinel Structure ◽

Site Occupancy ◽

Unit Cell ◽

Neutron Diffraction Data ◽

Gamma Alumina ◽

Tetrahedral Sites ◽

Powder Neutron Diffraction ◽

Cation Sites ◽

Powder Neutron Diffraction Data ◽

Insufficient Number

Gamma (γ) alumina is referred to as a defect spinel because it has a tetragonally distorted spinel structure (AB2O4) and an insufficient number of cations to fill all cation sites. In the spinel structure, the oxygen lattice is cubic close packed with A- and B-site cations in tetrahedral and octahedral coordination, respectively. The 2l⅓ Al atoms per unit cell of γ alumina can distribute themselves across 16 octahedral and 8 tetrahedral sites.The literature differs on where the 2⅔ cation vacancies per unit cell are located. Wilson and McConnell proposed that the vacancies in γ alumina, as first formed by calcining boehmite, are predominantly on the tetrahedral lattice but, with further heat treatment, move to occupy random positions on both octahedral and tetrahedral lattices. One study using NMR showed that the vacancies lay exclusively on the tetrahedral lattice, independent of the calcination temperature. A more-recent study using Rietveld refinement of powder neutron diffraction data suggested that both octahedral and tetrahedral lattices were partially occupied.

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