Real-time tilt undersampling optimization during electron tomography of beam sensitive samples using golden ratio...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Microscopy
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Electron tomography is crucial for 3D nanomaterial analysis but risks sample damage from high electron doses and prolonged exposure.
• Reducing projections (tilt undersampling) minimizes beam damage but can cause reconstruction artifacts due to insufficient data.
• Accurate 3D reconstructions of beam-sensitive samples require balancing electron dose and sampling for optimal projection numbers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a real-time protocol for determining the optimal number of projections in electron tomography.
• To minimize beam exposure and reconstruction artifacts for beam-sensitive samples.
• To improve the efficiency of 3D structural analysis in electron microscopy.

Main Methods:

• Proposed a novel protocol combining golden ratio scanning and quasi-3D reconstruction.
• Developed a real-time estimation method for optimal projection count during a single acquisition.
• Validated the protocol using simulated and real nanoparticle samples.

Main Results:

• Successfully estimated the optimal number of projections in real-time.
• Demonstrated reduced sample damage and minimized reconstruction artifacts.
• Applied the protocol to successfully reconstruct two beam-sensitive metal-organic framework complexes.

Conclusions:

• The proposed protocol offers an efficient and effective method for optimizing electron tomography acquisition for beam-sensitive nanomaterials.
• This approach reduces the need for multiple samples and extensive post-processing, saving time and resources.
• Enables more accurate and reliable 3D structural analysis of delicate nanoscale materials.