Electron optical design of an EFTEM concerning optimum selection of imaging parameters for different sizes of detection systems

1995 ◽  
Vol 53 ◽  
pp. 308-309
Author(s):  
G. Benner ◽  
W. Probst ◽  
R. Rilk
Keyword(s):  
Detection System ◽  
Photographic Plate ◽  
Optical Design ◽  
Ccd Camera ◽  
Energy Window ◽  
Acceptance Angle ◽  
Detection Systems ◽  
Energy Filtering ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Specimen Area

The amount of information which can be gained about an object is considerably improved by the incorporation of an imaging energy filter in a TEM. Besides the conventional modes of operation elastic brightfield (EBF) and darkfield (EDF) imaging or diffraction are provided by an Energy Filtering Transmission Electron Microscope (EFTEM) as well as Electron Spectroscopic Imaging (ESI) or Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy (EELS). Thus, the demands for carefully designed highly flexible electron optics are much more sophisticated as compared to a CTEM.One of the most important parameters for elastic imaging and ESI is the width of the energy window, which can be selected by a slit aperture of adjustable width according to the particular needs. This energy window defines the size of the transferable specimen area or diffraction pattern, respectively, as well as the acceptance angle of the spectrometer. In order to meet the optimum parameters concerning the energy window and the size of the detection system (e.g. photographic plate, image plate, Slow Scan CCD camera (SSCCD), TV camera, electron detector, etc.) the magnifications of the pre- and of the post-spectrometer projector lens systems has to be independently adjustable.

Comparison of Images of Crystalline Specimens by Energy-Filtering TEM at 80 keV and CTEM at 200 keV

1990 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 62-63
Author(s):  
A. Bakenfelder ◽  
L. Reimer ◽  
R. Rennekamp
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Energy Loss ◽  
Chromatic Aberration ◽  
Biological Tissues ◽  
Energy Window ◽  
High Voltage Electron Microscopy ◽  
Energy Filtering ◽  
Voltage Electron ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Crystalline Films

One advantage of energy-filtering electron microscopy (EFEM) is to avoid the chromatic aberration of conventional transmission electron microscopy (CTEM) by the mode of electron spectroscopic imaging (ESI) using either zero-loss filtering of unscattered and elastically scattered electrons or a narrow selected energy window at the most probable loss of the electron-energy-loss spectrum (EELS). Chromatic aberration can also be reduced by high-voltage electron microscopy (HVEM). Comparisons of ESI at 80 keV and CTEM at 200 keV have already been reported for biological tissues. In this contribution we compare the imaging of evaporated crystalline films with ESI at 80 keV in a ZEISS EM902 and with CTEM at 200 keV in a Hitachi H800/NA.Zero-loss filtering at 80 keV can be applied for maximum mass-thicknesses of x=ρt≃150 μg/cm2 where the zero-loss transmission falls below 0.001 and an energy window at the most-probable energy loss can be used below ≃300 μg/cm2. Inelastic scattering preserves the Bragg contrast.

An Integrated Energy-Filtering TEM for The Life Sciences

1996 ◽  
Vol 54 ◽  
pp. 466-467
Author(s):  
A.F. de Jong ◽  
H. Coppoolse ◽  
U. Lücken ◽  
M.K. Kundmann ◽  
A.J. Gubbens ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Low Dose ◽  
Life Sciences ◽  
Ccd Camera ◽  
Cold Trap ◽  
Objective Lens ◽  
Elemental Mapping ◽  
Energy Filtering ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Computer Controlled ◽  
High Degree

Energy-filtered transmission electron microscopy (EFTEM) has many uses in life sciences1. These include improved contrast for imaging unstained, cryo or thick samples; improved diffraction for electron crystallography, and elemental mapping and analysis. We have developed a new system for biological EFTEM that combines advanced electron-optical performance with a high degree of automation. The system is based on the Philips CM series of microscopes and the Gatan post-column imaging filter (GIF). One combination particulary suited for the life sciences is that of the CM 120-BioTWIN and the GIF100: the CM120-BioFilter. The CM 120-BioTWIN is equipped with a high-contrast objective lens for biological samples. Its specially designed cold-trap, together with low-dose software, supports full cryo-microscopy. The GIF 100 is corrected for second-order aberrations in both images and spectra. It produces images that are isochromatic to within 1.5 eV at 120 keV and distorted by less than 2% over lk x lk pixels. All the elements of the filter are computer controlled. Images and spectra are detected by a TV camera or a multi-scan CCD camera, both of which are incorporated in the filter. All filter and camera functions are controlled from Digital Micrograph running on an Apple Power Macintosh.

Chromatic imaging effects in hvem: an avenue to partial energy filtering

1988 ◽  
Vol 46 ◽  
pp. 828-829
Author(s):  
Mircea Fotino
Keyword(s):  
Image Quality ◽  
Spherical Aberration ◽  
Objective Lens ◽  
Acceptance Angle ◽  
Energy Filtering ◽  
Lens Aperture ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Angular Acceptance ◽  
Partial Energy ◽  
Imaging Beam

In transmission electron microscopy the normal image is formed by elastic and inelastic electrons that have interacted with the specimen. Their relative contributions to image formation depend on beam accelerating voltage and on angular acceptance determined by the objective-lens aperture.Inelastic scattering occurs primarily within small scattering angles while elastic scattering extends to wider angles. Consequently, the beam accepted by small objective-lens apertures contains a higher proportion of inelastic electrons than the beam accepted by larger apertures. By varying the size of the objective-lens aperture it is thus possible to modify the composition of the imaging beam and thereby the image quality: better resolution and higher image quality are obtained with larger apertures. It is necessary, however, to make sure that the acceptance angle is both larger than the lower limit imposed by diffraction and smaller that the upper limit imposed by spherical aberration.

The direct determination of magnetic domain wall profiles using a split detector STEM

1978 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 466-467
Author(s):  
J.N. Chapman ◽  
P.E. Batson ◽  
E.M. Waddell ◽  
R.P. Ferrier
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscope ◽  
Domain Wall ◽  
Transmission Electron Microscope ◽  
Domain Walls ◽  
Photographic Plate ◽  
Magnetic Domain ◽  
Direct Determination ◽  
Quantitative Information ◽  
Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope ◽  
Transmission Electron

By far the most commonly used mode of Lorentz microscopy in the examination of ferromagnetic thin films is the Fresnel or defocus mode. Use of this mode in the conventional transmission electron microscope (CTEM) is straightforward and immediately reveals the existence of all domain walls present. However, if such quantitative information as the domain wall profile is required, the technique suffers from several disadvantages. These include the inability to directly observe fine image detail on the viewing screen because of the stringent illumination coherence requirements, the difficulty of accurately translating part of a photographic plate into quantitative electron intensity data, and, perhaps most severe, the difficulty of interpreting this data. One solution to the first-named problem is to use a CTEM equipped with a field emission gun (FEG) (Inoue, Harada and Yamamoto 1977) whilst a second is to use the equivalent mode of image formation in a scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) (Chapman, Batson, Waddell, Ferrier and Craven 1977), a technique which largely overcomes the second-named problem as well.

Image registration with a computer driven S.T.E.M.

1978 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 98-99
Author(s):  
A.M.H. Schepman ◽  
J.A.P. van der Voort ◽  
J.E. Mellema
Keyword(s):  
Spot Size ◽  
Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope ◽  
Small Computer ◽  
Structural Studies ◽  
Area Of Interest ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Scanning Transmission ◽  
Specimen Area ◽  
On Line ◽  
Minimum Distances

A Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope (STEM) was coupled to a small computer. The system (see Fig. 1) has been built using a Philips EM400, equipped with a scanning attachment and a DEC PDP11/34 computer with 34K memory. The gun (Fig. 2) consists of a continuously renewed tip of radius 0.2 to 0.4 μm of a tungsten wire heated just below its melting point by a focussed laser beam (1). On-line operation procedures were developped aiming at the reduction of the amount of radiation of the specimen area of interest, while selecting the various imaging parameters and upon registration of the information content. Whereas the theoretical limiting spot size is 0.75 nm (2), routine resolution checks showed minimum distances in the order 1.2 to 1.5 nm between corresponding intensity maxima in successive scans. This value is sufficient for structural studies of regular biological material to test the performance of STEM over high resolution CTEM.

Convergent-beam electron diffraction at high spatial resolution

1992 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 1152-1153 ◽  
Author(s):  
J W Steeds
Keyword(s):  
Electron Diffraction ◽  
High Temperature Superconductors ◽  
Bloch Wave ◽  
Convergent Beam Electron Diffraction ◽  
Beam Electron ◽  
Energy Filtering ◽  
Small Probe ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Electron Microscopes ◽  
Convergent Beam

That the techniques of convergent beam electron diffraction (CBED) are now widely practised is evident, both from the way in which they feature in the sale of new transmission electron microscopes (TEMs) and from the frequency with which the results appear in the literature: new phases of high temperature superconductors is a case in point. The arrival of a new generation of TEMs operating with coherent sources at 200-300kV opens up a number of new possibilities.First, there is the possibility of quantitative work of very high accuracy. The small probe will essentially eliminate thickness or orientation averaging and this, together with efficient energy filtering by a doubly-dispersive electron energy loss spectrometer, will yield results of unsurpassed quality. The Bloch wave formulation of electron diffraction has proved itself an effective and efficient method of interpreting the data. The treatment of absorption in these calculations has recently been improved with the result that <100> HOLZ polarity determinations can now be performed on III-V and II-VI semiconductors.

Automated electron tomography: from data collection to image processing

1995 ◽  
Vol 53 ◽  
pp. 26-27
Author(s):  
Weiping Liu ◽  
Jennifer Fung ◽  
W.J. de Ruijter ◽  
Hans Chen ◽  
John W. Sedat ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Image Processing ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Structural Information ◽  
Imaging Technique ◽  
Electron Tomography ◽  
Ccd Camera ◽  
Automated Data Collection ◽  
Full Control ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Amorphous Structures

Electron tomography is a technique where many projections of an object are collected from the transmission electron microscope (TEM), and are then used to reconstruct the object in its entirety, allowing internal structure to be viewed. As vital as is the 3-D structural information and with no other 3-D imaging technique to compete in its resolution range, electron tomography of amorphous structures has been exercised only sporadically over the last ten years. Its general lack of popularity can be attributed to the tediousness of the entire process starting from the data collection, image processing for reconstruction, and extending to the 3-D image analysis. We have been investing effort to automate all aspects of electron tomography. Our systems of data collection and tomographic image processing will be briefly described.To date, we have developed a second generation automated data collection system based on an SGI workstation (Fig. 1) (The previous version used a micro VAX). The computer takes full control of the microscope operations with its graphical menu driven environment. This is made possible by the direct digital recording of images using the CCD camera.

The use of an energy-filtering electron microscope to reduce chromatic aberration in images of thick biological specimens

1986 ◽  
Vol 44 ◽  
pp. 88-91
Author(s):  
L. D. Peachey ◽  
J. P. Heath ◽  
G. Lamprecht
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Transmission Electron Microscopy ◽  
Electron Beam ◽  
Cross Section ◽  
Electron Scattering ◽  
Chromatic Aberration ◽  
Image Resolution ◽  
Incident Electron Energy ◽  
Energy Filtering ◽  
Transmission Electron

Biological specimens of cells and tissues generally are considerably thicker than ideal for high resolution transmission electron microscopy. Actual image resolution achieved is limited by chromatic aberration in the image forming electron lenses combined with significant energy loss in the electron beam due to inelastic scattering in the specimen. Increased accelerating voltages (HVEM, IVEM) have been used to reduce the adverse effects of chromatic aberration by decreasing the electron scattering cross-section of the elements in the specimen and by increasing the incident electron energy.

Use of digital microscopy in process control during the manufacture of rubber-modified thermoplastics

1996 ◽  
Vol 54 ◽  
pp. 616-617
Author(s):  
M. T. Dineen
Keyword(s):  
Ccd Camera ◽  
Operating Costs ◽  
Hard Copy ◽  
Production Plant ◽  
Digital Microscopy ◽  
Nih Image ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Conventional Film ◽  
Product Loss ◽  
Image Collection

The production of rubber modified thermoplastics can exceed rates of 30,000 pounds per hour. If a production plant needs to equilibrate or has an upset, that means operating costs and lost revenue. Results of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) can be used for process adjustments to minimize product loss. Conventional TEM, however, is not a rapid turnaround technique. The TEM process was examined, and it was determined that 50% of the time it took to complete a polymer sample was related to film processing, even when using automated equipment. By replacing the conventional film portion of the process with a commercially available system to digitally acquire the TEM image, a production plant can have the same TEM image in the control room within 1.5 hours of sampling.A Hitachi H-600 TEM Operated at 100 kV with a tungsten filament was retrofitted with a SEMICAPS™ image collection and processing workstation and a KODAK MEGAPLUS™ charged coupled device (CCD) camera (Fig. 1). Media Cybernetics Image-Pro Plus software was included, and connections to a Phaser II SDX printer and the network were made. Network printers and other PC and Mac software (e.g. NIH Image) were available. By using digital acquisition and processing, the time it takes to produce a hard copy of a digital image is greatly reduced compared to the time it takes to process film.

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