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10:25
Single-Digit Nanometer Electron-Beam Lithography with an Aberration-Corrected Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope
Published on: September 14, 2018
Imaging single atoms using secondary electrons with an aberration-corrected electron microscope.
1Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York 11973, USA. zhu@bnl.gov
Nature Materials
|September 22, 2009
Summary
Aberration correction in scanning electron microscopes (SEMs) now allows imaging of single atoms. This breakthrough achieves a fourfold resolution improvement, enabling simultaneous surface and bulk analysis.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Physics
- Microscopy
Background:
- Aberration correction in electron microscopy has improved resolution using transmitted electrons.
- Scanning electron microscopes (SEMs) have seen limited spatial resolution advances.
- Conventional SEMs are widely used for surface imaging at the micro-nanometer scale.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a new aberration-corrected scanning electron microscope (SEM).
- To significantly enhance the spatial resolution of SEMs.
- To enable simultaneous imaging of surface and bulk atomic structures.
Main Methods:
- Implementation of aberration correction in a scanning electron microscope (SEM).
- Detection of secondary electrons emitted from the sample surface.
- Simultaneous probing of the sample's entire thickness with transmitted electrons.
Main Results:
- Achieved imaging of single atoms with a fourfold improvement in spatial resolution.
- Demonstrated the ability to distinguish between surface and bulk atoms.
- Enabled simultaneous surface and bulk electron detection.
Conclusions:
- Aberration-corrected SEMs can now achieve atomic resolution.
- This technology overcomes previous limitations in SEM spatial resolution.
- The new capability allows selective visualization of surface and bulk atoms, revolutionizing microscopy and opening new applications.
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