Subscribe to the gold package and get unlimited access to Shamra Academy
Register a new userSimultaneous mapping of EMCD signals and crystal orientations in a transmission electron microscope
62
0
0.0
(
0
)
Ask ChatGPT about the research
No Arabic abstract
When magnetic properties are analysed in a TEM using the technique of electron magnetic circular dichroism (EMCD), one of the critical parameters is the sample orientation, and this, independently on the chosen acquisition geometry. Since small orientation changes can have a strong impact on the EMCD measurement, it is experimentally non trivial to measure the EMCD signal as a function of sample orientation. The classical EMCD experimental setup requires to tilt the crystal in a 2 beam orientation and to acquire two electron energy loss spectra at two conjugate scattering angles. The effect of a mistilt from the perfect 2-beam orientation on the measured EMCD signals has not been explored yet due to different experimental constraints. In order to maintain the exact sample location and orientation for the acquisition of the EMCD signal, we have developed a methodology to simultaneously map the quantitative EMCD signals and the local orientation of the crystal. We analyse, both experimentally and with simulations, how the measured magnetic signals evolve with a change in the crystal tilt from the exact 2-beam orientation. Based on this analysis, we establish an accurate relationship between the crystal orientations and the EMCD signals. Our results demonstrate that a small crystal tilt away from the 2-beam orientation can significantly alter the strength and the distribution of the EMCD signals. From an optimisation of the crystal orientation, we obtain quantitative EMCD measurements.
rate research
Read More
Ultra-fast transmission electron microscopy (UTEM) combines sub-picosecond time-resolution with the versatility of TEM spectroscopies. It allows one to study the dynamics of materials properties combining complementary techniques. However, until now, time-resolved cathodoluminescence, which is expected to give access to the optical properties dynamics, was still unavailable in a UTEM. In this paper, we report time-resolved cathodoluminescence measurements in an ultrafast transmission electron microscope. We measured lifetime maps, with a 12 nm spatial resolution and sub-nanoseconds resolution, of nano-diamonds with a high density of NV center. This study paves the way to new applications of UTEM and to correlative studies of optically active nanostructures.
Propagating atomic vibrational waves, phonons, rule important thermal, mechanical, optoelectronic and transport characteristics of materials. Thus the knowledge of phonon dispersion, namely the dependence of vibrational energy on momentum is a key ingredient to understand and optimize the materials behavior. However, despite its scientific importance in the last decade, the phonon dispersion of a freestanding monolayer of two dimensional (2D) materials such as graphene and its local variations has still remained elusive because of experimental limitations of vibrational spectroscopy. Even though electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) in transmission has recently been shown to probe the local vibrational charge responses, these studies are yet limited to polar materials like boron nitride or oxides, in which huge signals induced by strong dipole moments are present. On the other hand, measurements on graphene performed by inelastic x-ray (neutron) scattering spectroscopy or EELS in reflection do not have any spatial resolution and require large microcrystals. Here we provide a new pathway to determine the phonon dispersions down to the scale of an individual freestanding graphene monolayer by mapping the distinct vibration modes for a large momentum transfer. The measured scattering intensities are accurately reproduced and interpreted with density functional perturbation theory (DFPT). Additionally, a nanometre-scale mapping of selected momentum (q) resolved vibration modes using graphene nanoribbon structures has enabled us to spatially disentangle bulk, edge and surface vibrations.
We report our detailed investigation of high-resolution imaging using secondary electrons (SE) with a subnanometer probe in an aberration-corrected transmission electron microscope, Hitachi HD2700C. This instrument also allows us to acquire the corresponding annular-dark-field (ADF) images simultaneously and separately. We demonstrate that atomic SE imaging is achievable for a wide range of elements, from uranium to carbon. Using the ADF images as a reference, we study the SE image intensity and contrast as a function of applied bias, atomic number, crystal tilt and thickness to shed light on the origin of the unexpected ultrahigh resolution in SE imaging. We have also demonstrated that the SE signal is sensitive to the terminating species at a crystal surface. Possible mechanisms for atomicscale SE imaging are proposed. The ability to image both the surface and bulk of a sample at atomic scale is unprecedented, and could revolutionize the field of electron microscopy and imaging.
In this theoretical study we analyze contrast transfer of weak-phase objects in a transmission electron microscope, which is equipped with an aberration corrector (Cs-corrector) in the imaging lens system and a physical phase plate in the back focal plane of the objective lens. For a phase shift of pi/2 between scattered and unscattered electrons induced by a physical phase plate, the sine-type phase contrast transfer function is converted into a cosine-type function. Optimal imaging conditions could theoretically be achieved if the phase shifts caused by the objective lens defocus and lens aberrations would be equal zero. In reality this situation is difficult to realize because of residual aberrations and varying, non-zero local defocus values, which in general result from an uneven sample surface topography. We explore the conditions - i.e. range of Cs-values and defocus - for most favourable contrast transfer as a function of the information limit, which is only limited by the effect of partial coherence of the electron wave in Cs-corrected transmission electron microscopes. Under high-resolution operation conditions we find that a physical phase plate improves strongly low- and medium-resolution object contrast, while improving tolerance to defocus and Cs-variations, compared to a microscope without a phase plate.
In this work, an optic fiber based $textit{in situ}$ illumination system integrated into an aberration-corrected environmental transmission electron microscope (ETEM) is designed, built, characterized and applied. With this illumination system, the dynamic responses of photoactive materials to photons can be directly observed at the atomic level, and other stimuli including heating and various gases can also be applied simultaneously. Either a broadband light source or a high power laser source aiming to expedite photoreactions can be utilized, fitting different application needs. The optic fiber enters the ETEM through the objective aperture port, with a carefully designed curvature and a 30{deg} cut at the tip to orient the emitted light upwards onto the TEM specimen. The intensity distributions striking the sample from the broadband and laser sources are both measured, and due to the non-uniform distributions, an alignment procedure has been developed to align the bright spot with the electron optical axis of the TEM. The imaging and spectroscopy performances of the ETEM are proved to be maintained after incorporating this illumination system. Furthermore, Langmuir evaporation is observed when in situ laser light is applied to GaAs, demonstrating the phenomenon of optical heating on suitable semiconductor materials.
Log in to be able to interact and post comments
comments
Fetching comments
Sign in to be able to follow your search criteria
