Photoelectron microscopy is as old as electron microscopy itself. Electrons liberated from the object surface by photons are utilized to form an image that is a map of the object's emissivity. This physical property is a function of many parameters, some depending on the physical features of the objects and others on the conditions of the instrument rendering the image.The electron-optical situation is tricky, since the lateral resolution increases with the electric field strength at the object's surface. This, in turn, leads to small distances between the electrodes, restricting the photon flux that should be high for the sake of resolution.The electron-optical development came to fruition in the sixties. Figure 1a shows a typical photoelectron image of a polycrystalline tantalum sample irradiated by the UV light of a high-pressure mercury lamp.
