Aperture Dependence of Resolution and Beam Transmission in High-Voltage Tem of Thick Biological Specimens
In standard transmission electron microscopy the image is formed by electrons scattered both elastically and inelastically within the specimen. Their relative contributions to the image quality are determined by electron energy, specimen thickness and vertex half angle a of the collection cone defined by the objective aperture.The cross sections for scattering into a given angle decrease as the electron energy increases to the MeV region (1), and the accompanying increased preponderance of the elastic component results in improved resolution in the image of thin objects.In most biological applications of high-voltage electron microscopy the usual thickness range (0.25-5.0 μn) is such that plural scattering within the specimen becomes the dominant factor for resolution and contrast (e.g.(2)). In particular, increased fractions of electrons are removed from the transmitted beam by scattering outside the collection cone.