A study of small probe formation in a field emission gun TEM/STEM

1988 ◽  
Vol 46 ◽  
pp. 510-511
Author(s):  
J. K. Veiss ◽  
R. W. Carpenter
Keyword(s):  
Field Emission ◽  
Spatial Resolution ◽  
Current Distribution ◽  
Electron Microprobe ◽  
Real Space ◽  
High Magnification ◽  
Resolution Method ◽  
Space Images ◽  
High Brightness ◽  
Small Probe

A Philips EM 400T equipped with a field emission gun (FEG) has been studied to determine the spatial and angular current distribution in the electron microprobe at the specimen level. The field emission gun provides a high brightness source capable of producing electron probes with diameters of several nanometers and total currents of 0.05 - 50 nA. The advantage of the TEM/STEM over the dedicated STEM in this study is its ability to produce real-space images of the probe at the specimen plane. Detailed information about the probe current distribution can be experimentally obtained and applied to various small-probe techniques (i.e. HRAEM, STEM, microdiffraction) in order to determine their spatial resolution.The probe diameters listed in Table 1 were measured from high magnification images of the focussed probes which showed sharply defined outlines of the aberration figures. Additional measurements were obtained by scanning the probe across a small fixed entrance aperture to an EELS spectrometer, and also by an edge resolution method similar to that used by Venables and Janssen.

Performance and applications of a field-emission gun TEM/STEM

1992 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 942-943
Author(s):  
Judith M. Brock ◽  
Max T. Otten ◽  
Marc. J.C. de Jong
Keyword(s):  
Field Emission ◽  
High Resolution Imaging ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Small Energy ◽  
High Brightness ◽  
Small Probe ◽  
Resolution Imaging ◽  
Convergent Beam ◽  
Beam Patterns ◽  
Beam Diffraction

A Field Emission Gun (FEG) on a TEM/STEM instrument provides a major improvement in performance relative to one equipped with a LaB6 emitter. The improvement is particularly notable for small-probe techniques: EDX and EELS microanalysis, convergent beam diffraction and scanning. The high brightness of the FEG (108 to 109 A/cm2srad), compared with that of LaB6 (∼106), makes it possible to achieve high probe currents (∼1 nA) in probes of about 1 nm, whilst the currents for similar probes with LaB6 are about 100 to 500x lower. Accordingly the small, high-intensity FEG probes make it possible, e.g., to analyse precipitates and monolayer amounts of segregation on grain boundaries in metals or ceramics (Fig. 1); obtain high-quality convergent beam patterns from heavily dislocated materials; reliably detect 1 nm immuno-gold labels in biological specimens; and perform EDX mapping at nm-scale resolution even in difficult specimens like biological tissue.The high brightness and small energy spread of the FEG also bring an advantage in high-resolution imaging by significantly improving both spatial and temporal coherence.

scholarly journals Improving Analytical Spatial Resolution with the JEOL Field Emission Electron Microprobe

2011 ◽  
Vol 17 (S2) ◽  
pp. 624-625 ◽  
Author(s):  
P McSwiggen ◽  
N Mori ◽  
M Takakura ◽  
C Nielsen
Keyword(s):  
Field Emission ◽  
Spatial Resolution ◽  
Electron Microprobe ◽  
Emission Electron

Extended abstract of a paper presented at Microscopy and Microanalysis 2011 in Nashville, Tennessee, USA, August 7–August 11, 2011.

Quantitative Analysis and High-Resolution X-ray Mapping with a Field Emission Electron Microprobe

2013 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 10-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Hombourger ◽  
M. Outrequin
Keyword(s):  
Quantitative Analysis ◽  
High Resolution ◽  
Field Emission ◽  
Spatial Resolution ◽  
Electron Microprobe ◽  
Electron Probe ◽  
Chemical Elements ◽  
Electron Source ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Electron Probe Microanalyzer

The electron probe microanalyzer (EPMA) provides quantitative analysis for nearly all chemical elements with a spatial resolution of analysis about ~1 μm, which is relevant to microstructures in a wide variety of materials and mineral specimens. Recent implementation of the Schottky emitter field-emission gun (FEG) electron source in the EPMA has significantly improved the spatial resolution and detectability of the EPMA technique.

A Stable Field Emission Electron Source

1977 ◽  
Vol 35 ◽  
pp. 58-59
Author(s):  
W.R. Bottoms ◽  
G.B. Haydon
Keyword(s):  
Field Emission ◽  
Signal To Noise Ratio ◽  
High Brightness ◽  
Electron Sources ◽  
Brightness Field ◽  
Current Densities ◽  
Properties Of Materials ◽  
Stable Field ◽  
Stable Current ◽  
Careful Design

There is great interest in improving the brightness of electron sources and therefore the ability of electron optical instrumentation to probe the properties of materials. Extensive work by Dr. Crew and others has provided extremely high brightness sources for certain kinds of analytical problems but which pose serious difficulties in other problems. These sources cannot survive in conventional system vacuums. If one wishes to gather information from the other signal channels activated by electron beam bombardment it is necessary to provide sufficient current to allow an acceptable signal-to-noise ratio. It is possible through careful design to provide a high brightness field emission source which has the capability of providing high currents as well as high current densities to a specimen. In this paper we describe an electrode to provide long-lived stable current in field emission sources.The source geometry was based upon the results of extensive computer modeling. The design attempted to maximize the total current available at a specimen.

Characteristics and Application of Temperature-Field Emitters

1975 ◽  
Vol 33 ◽  
pp. 144-145
Author(s):  
N. Tamura ◽  
T. Goto ◽  
Y. Harada
Keyword(s):  
Temperature Field ◽  
Electron Microscope ◽  
Field Emission ◽  
Resolving Power ◽  
High Brightness ◽  
Field Emitters ◽  
Emission Electron ◽  
Sufficient Stability ◽  
Scanning Electron ◽  
Illuminating System

On account of its high brightness, the field emission electron source has the advantage that it provides the conventional electron microscope with highly coherent illuminating system and that it directly improves the, resolving power of the scanning electron microscope. The present authors have reported some results obtained with a 100 kV field emission electron microscope.It has been proven, furthermore, that the tungsten emitter as a temperature field emission source can be utilized with a sufficient stability under a modest vacuum of 10-8 ~ 10-9 Torr. The present paper is concerned with an extension of our study on the characteristics of the temperature field emitters.

A comparative study on the cold type and thermal type field emission guns used in the same electron microscope

1978 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 58-59
Author(s):  
M. Iwatsuki ◽  
Y. Kokubo ◽  
Y. Harada
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscope ◽  
Field Emission ◽  
Signal To Noise Ratio ◽  
Electron Source ◽  
Resolving Power ◽  
Optical Source ◽  
Experimental Conditions ◽  
High Brightness ◽  
Illumination System ◽  
Transmission Electron

On accout of its high brightness, small optical source size, and minimal energy spread, the field emission gun (FEG) has the advantage that it provides the conventional transmission electron microscope (TEM) with a highly coherent illumination system and directly improves the resolving power and signal-to-noise ratio of the scanning electron microscope (SEM). The FEG is generally classified into two types; the cold field emission (C-FEG) and thermal field emission gun (T-FEG). The former, in which a field emitter is used at the room temperature, was successfully developed as an electron source for the SEM. The latter, in which the emitter is heated to the temperature range of 1000-1800°K, was also proved to be very suited as an electron source for the TEM, as well as for the SEM. Some characteristics of the two types of the FEG have been studied and reported by many authors. However, the results of the respective types have been obtained separately under different experimental conditions.

Three-fold astigmatism: An important TEM aberration

1993 ◽  
Vol 51 ◽  
pp. 972-973 ◽  
Author(s):  
O.L. Krivanek ◽  
M.L. Leber
Keyword(s):  
High Resolution ◽  
Spatial Frequency ◽  
Field Emission ◽  
Azimuthal Angle ◽  
Hollow Cone ◽  
Small Probe ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
High Resolution Images ◽  
Image Position

Three-fold astigmatism resembles regular astigmatism, but it has 3-fold rather than 2-fold symmetry. Its contribution to the aberration function χ(q) can be written as:where A3 is the coefficient of 3-fold astigmatism, λ is the electron wavelength, q is the spatial frequency, ϕ the azimuthal angle (ϕ = tan-1 (qy/qx)), and ϕ3 the direction of the astigmatism.Three-fold astigmatism is responsible for the “star of Mercedes” aberration figure that one obtains from intermediate lenses once their two-fold astigmatism has been corrected. Its effects have been observed when the beam is tilted in a hollow cone over a wide range of angles, and there is evidence for it in high resolution images of a small probe obtained in a field emission gun TEM/STEM instrument. It was also expected to be a major aberration in sextupole-based Cs correctors, and ways were being developed for dealing with it on Cs-corrected STEMs.

Optical characteristics of the hitachi HF-2000 cold field-emission TEM

1993 ◽  
Vol 51 ◽  
pp. 1076-1077
Author(s):  
L. F. Allard ◽  
E. Völkl ◽  
T. A. Nolan
Keyword(s):  
Field Emission ◽  
Recent Literature ◽  
Electron Gun ◽  
High Brightness ◽  
Condenser Lens ◽  
Illumination System ◽  
High Resolution Images ◽  
Imaging Mode ◽  
Better Than ◽  
Illuminating System

The illumination system of the cold field emission (CFE) Hitachi HF-2000 TEM operates with a single condenser lens in normal imaging mode, and with a second condenser lens excited to give the ultra-fine 1 nm probe for microanalysis. The electron gun provides a guaranteed high brightness of better than 7×l08 A/cm2/sr, more than twice the guaranteed brightness of Schottky emission guns. There have been several articles in the recent literature (e.g. refs.) which claim that the geometry of this illumination system yields a total current which is so low that when the beam is spread at low magnifications (say 10 kX), the operator must “keep his eyes glued to the binoculars” in order to see the image. It is also claimed that this illuminating system produces an isoplanatic patch (the area over which image character does not vary significantly) at high magnification which is so small that the instrument is ineffective for recording high resolution images.

LVSEM: Past Present and Future

1990 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 364-365
Author(s):  
James B. Pawley
Keyword(s):  
Field Emission ◽  
Line Width ◽  
Time Scales ◽  
Silicon Oxide ◽  
Beam Current ◽  
High Brightness ◽  
High Beam ◽  
Fixed Charges ◽  
Beam Voltage ◽  
Deposited Metal

Past: In 1960 Thornley published the first description of SEM studies carried out at low beam voltage (LVSEM, 1-5 kV). The aim was to reduce charging on insulators but increased contrast and difficulties with low beam current and frozen biological specimens were also noted. These disadvantages prevented widespread use of LVSEM except by a few enthusiasts such as Boyde. An exception was its use in connection with studies in which biological specimens were dissected in the SEM as this process destroyed the conducting films and produced charging unless LVSEM was used.In the 1980’s field emission (FE) SEM’s came into more common use. The high brightness and smaller energy spread characteristic of the FE-SEM’s greatly reduced the practical resolution penalty associated with LVSEM and the number of investigators taking advantage of the technique rapidly expanded; led by those studying semiconductors. In semiconductor research, the SEM is used to measure the line-width of the deposited metal conductors and of the features of the photo-resist used to form them. In addition, the SEM is used to measure the surface potentials of operating circuits with sub-micrometer resolution and on pico-second time scales. Because high beam voltages destroy semiconductors by injecting fixed charges into silicon oxide insulators, these studies must be performed using LVSEM where the beam does not penetrate so far.

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