Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 16, 2026

A Machine-Vision Approach to Transmission Electron Microscopy Workflows, Results Analysis and Data Management
Published on: June 23, 2023
Intrinsic instability of aberration-corrected electron microscopes
S M Schramm1, S J van der Molen, R M Tromp
1Leiden University, Kamerlingh Onnes Laboratorium, P.O. Box 9504, NL-2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands.
Abstract:
Aberration-corrected microscopes with subatomic resolution will impact broad areas of science and technology. However, the experimentally observed lifetime of the corrected state is just a few minutes. Here we show that the corrected state is intrinsically unstable; the higher its quality, the more unstable it is. Analyzing the contrast transfer function near optimum correction, we define an "instability budget" which allows a rational trade-off between resolution and stability. Unless control systems are developed to overcome these challenges, intrinsic instability poses a fundamental limit to the resolution practically achievable in the electron microscope.
Related Concept Videos
Microtubule Instability
Overview of Electron Microscopy
Transmission Electron Microscopy
Scanning Electron Microscopy
Fundamental Principles
Accelerated...
Phase Contrast and Differential Interference Contrast Microscopy
In-phase-contrast microscopes, interference between light directly passing through a cell and light refracted by cellular components is used to create high-contrast, high-resolution images without staining. It is the oldest and simplest type of microscope that creates an image by altering the wavelengths of light rays passing through the specimen. Altered wavelength paths are created using an annular stop in the condenser. The annular stop produces a hollow cone of...

