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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Mar 3, 2026

$Measurements of Long-range Electronic Correlations During Femtosecond Diffraction Experiments Performed on Nanocrystals of Buckminsterfullerene$

Measurements of Long-range Electronic Correlations During Femtosecond Diffraction Experiments Performed on Nanocrystals of Buckminsterfullerene

Published on: August 22, 2017

Three-dimensional nanostructure determination from a large diffraction data set recorded using scanning electron

Yifei Meng^1,2, Jian-Min Zuo^1,2

¹Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1304 W. Green Street, Urbana, IL 61801, USA.

|May 3, 2017

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

A new scanning electron nanodiffraction technique reconstructs 3D nanostructures. This method reveals grain morphology and crystallographic orientation in materials like TiN thin films.

Keywords:

crystal morphology diffraction tomography inorganic materials nanocrystalline TiN films scanning electron diffraction three-dimensional nanostructure

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Area of Science:

Materials Science
Nanotechnology
Crystallography

Background:

Characterizing three-dimensional (3D) nanostructures is crucial for understanding material properties.
Existing techniques often face limitations in resolution, dose, or 3D reconstruction capabilities.

Purpose of the Study:

To develop a novel diffraction-based technique for determining 3D nanostructures.
To enable the reconstruction of grain morphology and crystallographic orientation in nanomaterials.

Main Methods:

Utilized high-resolution, low-dose scanning electron nanodiffraction (SEND).
Employed a specialized sample holder for large-angle sample rotation.
Applied an algebraic iterative algorithm for 3D reconstruction of nanostructures.

Main Results:

Successfully reconstructed the 3D morphology and crystallographic orientations of columnar TiN grains (tens of nanometers in diameter) in a nanocrystalline thin film.
Demonstrated the identification of grains in 3D space using crystal orientation and reconstructed dark-field images.
Validated the technique's applicability to multiphase nanocrystalline materials.

Conclusions:

The tomographic SEND technique offers an effective and adaptive method for 3D nanostructure determination.
This approach provides detailed insights into the microstructural and crystallographic characteristics of nanomaterials.
The technique holds potential for advancing the analysis of complex nanocrystalline systems.