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Fig. 1 | Advanced Structural and Chemical Imaging

Fig. 1

From: Detecting structural variances of Co3O4 catalysts by controlling beam-induced sample alterations in the vacuum of a transmission electron microscope

Fig. 1

Schematics of electron beam-induced object alterations in the mid-voltage range. Damaged areas are dominantly generated in surface proximity and symbolized by wide diffuse lines. HRTEM (a, c) and STEM (b, d) detection modes are considered. a, b Initial situation for thick samples. c, d Structure after a prolonged exposure to the electron beam (e-beam) or thin sample. The ongoing sputtering process removes atoms (black dots) from the top and bottom surfaces at different rates. In HRTEM mode, the beam is static, the semi-convergence angle is ~0.1 mrad and the dose rate can be varied between 1 atto A/Å2 and 1 pico A/Å2. In STEM mode, the beam is scanned, the semi-convergence varies between 5 and 25 mrad and the dose rate typically changes between 1 and 100 pico A/Å2. The illuminated area is matched to the imaged area (camera). For more details see text

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