Temperature effects on fracture behavior of notched silicon film specimen

All serious electron microscopists at one time or another have been concerned with the cleanliness and freedom from artifacts of thin film specimen support substrates. This is particularly important where there are relatively few particles of a sample to be found for study, as in the case of micrometeorite collections. For the deposition of such celestial garbage through the use of balloons, rockets, and aircraft, the thin film substrates must have not only all the attributes necessary for use in the electron microscope, but also be able to withstand rather wide temperature variations at high altitude, vibration and shock inherent in the collection vehicle's operation and occasionally an unscheduled violent landing.Nitrocellulose has been selected as a film forming material that meets these requirements yet lends itself to a relatively simple clean-up procedure to remove particulate contaminants. A 1% nitrocellulose solution is prepared by dissolving “Parlodion” in redistilled amyl acetate from which all moisture has been removed.

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SEM evaluation of the TEM cold-stage double-film specimen

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100111471 ◽

1984 ◽

Vol 42 ◽

pp. 272-273

Author(s):

Jayesh Bellare

Keyword(s):

Spatial Distribution ◽

Sample Preparation ◽

Sample Thickness ◽

Specimen Preparation ◽

Preparation Technique ◽

Liquid Sample ◽

Thin Specimen ◽

Sample Preparation Technique ◽

Cold Stage ◽

Film Specimen

Seeing is believing, but only after the sample preparation technique has received a systematic study and a full record is made of the treatment the sample gets.For microstructured liquids and suspensions, fast-freeze thermal fixation and cold-stage microscopy is perhaps the least artifact-laden technique. In the double-film specimen preparation technique, a layer of liquid sample is trapped between 100- and 400-mesh polymer (polyimide, PI) coated grids. Blotting against filter paper drains excess liquid and provides a thin specimen, which is fast-frozen by plunging into liquid nitrogen. This frozen sandwich (Fig. 1) is mounted in a cooling holder and viewed in TEM.Though extremely promising for visualization of liquid microstructures, this double-film technique suffers from a) ireproducibility and nonuniformity of sample thickness, b) low yield of imageable grid squares and c) nonuniform spatial distribution of particulates, which results in fewer being imaged.

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Characterization of carbides in M50NiL

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100087343 ◽

1991 ◽

Vol 49 ◽

pp. 606-607

Author(s):

L. S. Lin ◽

K. P. Gumz ◽

A. V. Karg ◽

C. C. Law

Keyword(s):

Temperature Effects ◽

Base Composition ◽

Lattice Parameter ◽

Control Surface ◽

Carbide Formation ◽

Particle Sizes ◽

Low Carbon ◽

Fee Structure ◽

Heat Treated

Carbon and temperature effects on carbide formation in the carburized zone of M50NiL are of great importance because they can be used to control surface properties of bearings. A series of homogeneous alloys (with M50NiL as base composition) containing various levels of carbon in the range of 0.15% to 1.5% (in wt.%) and heat treated at temperatures between 650°C to 1100°C were selected for characterizations. Eleven samples were chosen for carbide characterization and chemical analysis and their identifications are listed in Table 1.Five different carbides consisting of M6C, M2C, M7C3 and M23C6 were found in all eleven samples examined as shown in Table 1. M6C carbides (with least carbon) were found to be the major carbide in low carbon alloys (<0.3% C) and their amounts decreased as the carbon content increased. In sample C (0.3% C), most particles (95%) encountered were M6C carbide with a particle sizes range between 0.05 to 0.25 um. The M6C carbide are enriched in both Mo and Fe and have a fee structure with lattice parameter a=1.105 nm (Figure 1).

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