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Comprehensive Characterization of Extended Defects in Semiconductor Materials by a Scanning Electron Microscope
Published on: May 28, 2016
Microscopic chemical characterization of epoxy resin with scanning transmission electron microscopy - electron
Hsin-Hui Huang1, Tomohiro Miyata2, Yohei K Sato2
1Japan Fine Ceramics Center, 2-4-1 Mutsuno, Atsuta-ku, Nagoya 456-8587, Japan.
Abstract:
The structural characterization of epoxy resins is essential to improve the understanding on their structure-property relationship for promising high-performance applications. Among all analytical techniques, scanning transmission electron microscopy-electron energy-loss spectroscopy (STEM-EELS) is a powerful tool for probing the chemical and structural information of various materials at a high spatial resolution. However, for sensitive materials, such as epoxy resins, the structural damage induced by electron-beam irradiation limits the spatial resolution in the STEM-EELS analysis. In this study, we demonstrated the extraction of the intrinsic features and structural characteristics of epoxy resins by STEM-EELS under electron doses below 1 e-/Å2 at room temperature. The reliability of the STEM-EELS analysis was confirmed by X-ray absorption spectroscopy and spectrum simulation as low- or non-damaged reference data. The investigation of the dependence of the epoxy resin on the electron dose and exposure time revealed the structural degradation associated with electron-beam irradiation, exploring the prospect of EELS for examining epoxy resin at low doses. Furthermore, the degradation mechanisms in the epoxy resin owing to electron-beam irradiation were revealed. These findings can promote the structural characterization of epoxy-resin-based composites and other soft materials.
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