Off-axis electron holography applied to the study of interfaces

1992 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 244-245
Author(s):  
J.K. Weiss ◽  
M. Gajdardziska-Josifovska ◽  
M. R. McCartney ◽  
David J. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Electric Fields ◽  
Resolution Enhancement ◽  
Interfacial Structure ◽  
Atomic Scale ◽  
Bulk Property ◽  
Electron Holography ◽  
Specimen Thickness ◽  
Composition And Structure ◽  
Chemical Segregation ◽  
Diffraction Effects

Interfacial structure is a controlling parameter in the behavior of many materials. Electron microscopy methods are widely used for characterizing such features as interface abruptness and chemical segregation at interfaces. The problem for high resolution microscopy is to establish optimum imaging conditions for extracting this information. We have found that off-axis electron holography can provide useful information for the study of interfaces that is not easily obtained by other techniques.Electron holography permits the recovery of both the amplitude and the phase of the image wave. Recent studies have applied the information obtained from electron holograms to characterizing magnetic and electric fields in materials and also to atomic-scale resolution enhancement. The phase of an electron wave passing through a specimen is shifted by an amount which is proportional to the product of the specimen thickness and the projected electrostatic potential (ignoring magnetic fields and diffraction effects). If atomic-scale variations are ignored, the potential in the specimen is described by the mean inner potential, a bulk property sensitive to both composition and structure. For the study of interfaces, the specimen thickness is assumed to be approximately constant across the interface, so that the phase of the image wave will give a picture of mean inner potential across the interface.

Electron holography of catalysts

1995 ◽  
Vol 53 ◽  
pp. 416-417
Author(s):  
A. K. Datye ◽  
D. S. Kalakkad ◽  
L. F. Allard ◽  
E. Völkl
Keyword(s):  
Heterogeneous Catalysts ◽  
High Surface ◽  
High Surface Area ◽  
Atomic Scale ◽  
Nano Particles ◽  
Phase Image ◽  
Electron Holography ◽  
Specimen Thickness ◽  
Phase Information ◽  
Particle Structure

The active phase in heterogeneous catalysts consists of nanometer-sized metal or oxide particles dispersed within the tortuous pore structure of a high surface area matrix. Such catalysts are extensively used for controlling emissions from automobile exhausts or in industrial processes such as the refining of crude oil to produce gasoline. The morphology of these nano-particles is of great interest to catalytic chemists since it affects the activity and selectivity for a class of reactions known as structure-sensitive reactions. In this paper, we describe some of the challenges in the study of heterogeneous catalysts, and provide examples of how electron holography can help in extracting details of particle structure and morphology on an atomic scale.Conventional high-resolution TEM imaging methods permit the image intensity to be recorded, but the phase information in the complex image wave is lost. However, it is the phase information which is sensitive at the atomic scale to changes in specimen thickness and composition, and thus analysis of the phase image can yield important information on morphological details at the nanometer level.

High Resolution Z-Contrast Imaging of Semiconductor Interfaces

MRS Bulletin ◽  
1991 ◽  
Vol 16 (3) ◽  
pp. 34-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
D.E. Jesson ◽  
S.J. Pennycook
Keyword(s):  
High Resolution ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
High Resolution Electron Microscopy ◽  
Growth Conditions ◽  
Interfacial Structure ◽  
Atomic Scale ◽  
Objective Lens ◽  
Specimen Thickness ◽  
Contrast Imaging ◽  
Electrical Measurements

The structural and compositional integrity of interfaces between semiconductor multilayers can profoundly influence the optical and electronic properties of epitaxially grown heterostructures. Understanding the atomic-scale interfacial structure and chemistry is therefore essential to correctly relate electrical measurements to theoretical models and to correlate such effects with growth conditions. High-resolution electron microscopy (HREM) has played a pivotal role in this process, providing important information on interface commensurability and revealing the presence and nature of defects.More recently, significant advances have been made in applying HREM to the difficult problem of chemical composition mapping in systems where no structural change occurs across the interfaces. The basis of such methods involves using the objective lens as a bandpass filter and tuning in on a specific range of spatial frequencies to form a chemically sensitive interference pattern. By using a suitable low-index zone axis and choosing an optimum range of specimen thickness, the patterns can indeed be extremely sensitive to the strength and periodicities of the projected potential.

On the influence of specimen thickness in TEM images of super-conducting vortices

1996 ◽  
Vol 54 ◽  
pp. 724-725
Author(s):  
J. Bonevich ◽  
D. Capacci ◽  
G. Pozzi ◽  
K. Harada ◽  
H. Kasai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Flux Line ◽  
Analytical Form ◽  
Realistic Model ◽  
Electron Holography ◽  
Specimen Thickness ◽  
Flux Tubes ◽  
Analytical Expression ◽  
Flux Lines ◽  
Normal Core ◽  
Two Parameters

The successful observation of superconducting flux lines (fluxons) in thin specimens both in conventional and high Tc superconductors by means of Lorentz and electron holography methods has presented several problems concerning the interpretation of the experimental results. The first approach has been to model the fluxon as a bundle of flux tubes perpendicular to the specimen surface (for which the electron optical phase shift has been found in analytical form) with a magnetic flux distribution given by the London model, which corresponds to a flux line having an infinitely small normal core. In addition to being described by an analytical expression, this model has the advantage that a single parameter, the London penetration depth, completely characterizes the superconducting fluxon. The obtained results have shown that the most relevant features of the experimental data are well interpreted by this model. However, Clem has proposed another more realistic model for the fluxon core that removes the unphysical limitation of the infinitely small normal core and has the advantage of being described by an analytical expression depending on two parameters (the coherence length and the London depth).

scholarly journals Chemical Quantification of Atomic-Scale EDS Maps under Thin Specimen Conditions

2014 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
pp. 1782-1790 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ping Lu ◽  
Eric Romero ◽  
Shinbuhm Lee ◽  
Judith L. MacManus-Driscoll ◽  
Quanxi Jia
Keyword(s):  
Atomic Scale ◽  
Specimen Thickness ◽  
Peak Width ◽  
Thin Specimen ◽  
Gaussian Peak ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Scanning Transmission ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Chemical Quantification

AbstractWe report our effort to quantify atomic-scale chemical maps obtained by collecting energy-dispersive X-ray spectra (EDS) using scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) (STEM-EDS). With thin specimen conditions and localized EDS scattering potential, the X-ray counts from atomic columns can be properly counted by fitting Gaussian peaks at the atomic columns, and can then be used for site-by-site chemical quantification. The effects of specimen thickness and X-ray energy on the Gaussian peak width are investigated using SrTiO3 (STO) as a model specimen. The relationship between the peak width and spatial resolution of an EDS map is also studied. Furthermore, the method developed by this work is applied to study cation occupancy in a Sm-doped STO thin film and antiphase boundaries (APBs) present within the STO film. We find that Sm atoms occupy both Sr and Ti sites but preferably the Sr sites, and Sm atoms are relatively depleted at the APBs likely owing to the effect of strain.

Oil and Paper Insulation for DC Converter Transformer

2017 ◽  
pp. 194-231
Keyword(s):  
Surface Charge ◽  
Electric Fields ◽  
Power Flow ◽  
Heat Transfer Process ◽  
Transformer Oil ◽  
Polarity Reversal ◽  
Bulk Property ◽  
Hvdc System ◽  
Direct Fluorination ◽  
Paper Insulation

Transformer oil and oil-impregnated paper, serve as the essential parts of converter transformer, suffering various electric fields. The accumulation of surface charge on the paper would lead to flashover. When the power flow of the HVDC system is reversed, the charge field will easily lead to discharge. Direct-fluorination is a method which could affect the material property without alternating the bulk property. Besides, a new type of nano-modified transformer oil is a method to improve properties. This chapter presents a study of the effect of fluorination on surface charge behavior, the effect of polarity reversal voltages on interface charge behavior and the effect of Boron nitride (BN) nanoparticles on the high thermal conductivity of transformer oil. Results show that fluorination had an influence on the chemical property of the paper and BN nanoparticles has improvements in heat transfer process. In the polarity reversal test, the dissipation rate becomes smaller as the reversal time gets longer.

Interfacial Composition and Structure in Pt/Ni and Pt/Nb Multilayer Films

1990 ◽  
Vol 187 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.A. Bain ◽  
B.M. Clemens ◽  
S. Brennan
Keyword(s):  
Lattice Spacing ◽  
Grazing Incidence ◽  
Multilayer Films ◽  
Interfacial Structure ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Composition And Structure ◽  
Interfacial Composition ◽  
Alloying Effects ◽  
Coherent Interfaces

AbstractThe interfacial structure of Pt/Nb and Pt/Ni sputtered multilayer films was studied using x-ray diffraction in symmetric, asymmetric, and grazing incidence modes. The grazing incidence and asymmetric diffraction were used to distinguish alloying effects on the lattice spacing from strain in the films. This strain was shown to be consistent with semi-coherent interfaces in the Pt/Ni but not in the Pt/Nb in which another strain generating mechanism dominates.

Survey of Grain Boundary Energies in Four Elemental Metals

2012 ◽  
Vol 715-716 ◽  
pp. 179-179
Author(s):  
David L. Olmsted ◽  
Elizabeth A. Holm ◽  
Stephen M. Foiles
Keyword(s):  
Grain Boundary ◽  
Grain Boundaries ◽  
Energy Minimization ◽  
Boundary Energy ◽  
Atomic Scale ◽  
Energy Structure ◽  
Grain Boundary Energy ◽  
Fcc Metals ◽  
Composition And Structure ◽  
Boundary Properties

Grain boundary properties depend on both composition and structure. To test the relative contributions of composition and structure to the grain boundary energy, we calculated the energy of 388 grain boundaries in four elemental, fcc metals: Ni, Al, Au and Cu. We constructed atomic-scale bicrystals of each boundary and subjected them to a rigorous energy minimization process to determine the lowest energy structure. Typically, several thousand boundary configurations were examined for each boundary in each element.

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