ASSIGNMENT-II

NAME: R DILLI KRISHNA

REGDNO:15BEE1218

SEM
(Scanning Electron Microscopy)
The scanning electron microscope (SEM) uses a focused beam of high-energy electrons
to generate a variety of signals at the surface of solid specimens. The signals that derive
from electron-sample interactions reveal information about the sample including external
morphology (texture), chemical composition, and crystalline structure and orientation of
materials making up the sample. In most applications, data are collected over a selected
area of the surface of the sample, and a 2-dimensional image is generated that displays
spatial variations in these properties. Areas ranging from approximately 1 cm to 5
microns in width can be imaged in a scanning mode using conventional SEM techniques

Fundamental Principles of Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM)

Accelerated electrons in an SEM carry significant amounts of kinetic energy, and this
energy is dissipated as a variety of signals produced by electron-sample interactions when
the incident electrons are decelerated in the solid sample. These signals include secondary
electrons, backscattered electrons, diffracted backscattered electrons, photons, visible
light and heat. Secondary electrons and backscattered electrons are commonly used for
imaging samples: secondary electrons are most valuable for showing morphology and
topography on samples and backscattered electrons are most valuable for illustrating
contrasts in composition in multiphase samples is produced by inelastic collisions of the
incident electrons with electrons in discrete orbitals (shells) of atoms in the sample. As
the excited electrons return to lower energy states, they yield X-rays that are of a fixed
wavelength (that is related to the difference in energy levels of electrons in different
shells for a given element). Thus, characteristic X-rays are produced for each element in a
mineral that is "excited" by the electron beam. SEM analysis is considered to be "nondestructive"; that is, x-rays generated by electron interactions do not lead to volume loss
of the sample, so it is possible to analyze the same materials repeatedly.

NAME: R DILLI KRISHNA

REGDNO:15BEE1218

Instrumentation

Essential components of all SEMs include the following:

Electron Source ("Gun")

Electron Lenses

Sample Stage

Detectors for all signals of interest

Display / Data output devices

Infrastructure Requirements:
o Power Supply
o Vacuum System
o Cooling system
o Vibration-free floor

NAME: R DILLI KRISHNA

REGDNO:15BEE1218
o Room free of ambient magnetic and electric fields
SEMs always have at least one detector (usually a secondary electron detector), and most
have additional detectors. The specific capabilities of a particular instrument are critically
dependent on which detectors it accommodates.

Applications
The SEM is routinely used to generate high-resolution images of shapes of objects (SEI)
and to show spatial variations in chemical compositions: 1) acquiring elemental maps or
spot chemical analyses using EDS, 2)discrimination of phases based on mean atomic
number (commonly related to relative density) using BSE, and 3) compositional maps
based on differences in trace element "activators" using CL. The SEM is also widely
used to identify phases based on qualitative chemical analysis and/or crystalline structure.
Precise measurement of very small features and objects down to 50 nm in size is also
accomplished using the SEM. Backscattered electron images can be used for rapid
discrimination of phases in multiphase samples. SEMs equipped with diffracted
backscattered electron detectors can be used to examine micro fabric and crystallographic
orientation in many materials.

Anthophyllite asbestos, Georgia

NAME: R DILLI KRISHNA

REGDNO:15BEE1218

TEM
(Transmission electron microscope)
The use of a transmission electron microscope (TEM) to study minute structures by
taking transmission electron micrographs of thin sections of materials and/or studying
diffraction patterns produced using a TEM.
The TEM operates on the same basic principles as the light microscope but uses electrons
instead of light. Because the wavelength of electrons is much smaller than that of light,
the optimal resolution attainable for TEM images is many orders of magnitude better than
that from a light microscope. Thus, TEMs can reveal the finest details of internal
structure - in some cases as small as individual atoms.
IMAGING

The beam of electrons from the electron gun is focused into a small, thin, coherent beam
by the use of the condenser lens. This beam is restricted by the condenser aperture, which
excludes high angle electrons. The beam then strikes the specimen and parts of it are
transmitted depending upon the thickness and electron transparency of the specimen. This
transmitted portion is focused by the objective lens into an image on phosphor screen or
charge coupled device (CCD) camera. Optional objective apertures can be used to
enhance the contrast by blocking out high-angle diffracted electrons. The image then
passed down the column through the intermediate and projector lenses, is enlarged all the
way.
The image strikes the phosphor screen and light is generated, allowing the user to see the
image. The darker areas of the image represent those areas of the sample that fewer
electrons are transmitted through while the lighter areas of the image represent those
areas of the sample that more electrons were transmitted through.

PRINCIPLE:

Illumination - Source is a beam of high velocity electrons accelerated under

vacuum, focused by condenser lens (electromagnetic bending of electron beam)
onto specimen.

Image formation - Loss and scattering of electrons by individual parts of the

specimen. Emergent electron beam is focused by objective lens. Final image
forms on a fluorescent screen for viewing.

NAME: R DILLI KRISHNA

REGDNO:15BEE1218

NAME: R DILLI KRISHNA

REGDNO:15BEE1218

Diffraction
Fig2. shows a simple sketch of the path of a beam of electrons in a TEM from just above
the specimen and down the column to the phosphor screen. As the electrons pass through
the sample, they are scattered by the electrostatic potential set up by the constituent
elements in the specimen. After passing through the specimen they pass through the
electromagnetic objective lens which focuses all the electrons scattered from one point of
the specimen into one point in the image plane. Also, shown in fig 2 is a dotted line
where the electrons scattered in the same direction by the sample are collected into a
single point. This is the back focal plane of the objective lens and is where the diffraction
pattern is formed.

ADVANTAGES:

Resolution: Electron microscopes can resolve very much greater detail than light
microscopes because the electron beam has a much shorter wavelength than the
(comparably longer) wavelength of visible light that forms the image in a light
microscope.

Magnification: Electron microscopes can form much higher magnification

images (magnification = image size / object size) due to the high magnification
'power' of the electromagnetic lenses, especially the magnetic objective. The high
magnification power is possible due to high voltage applied to the
electromagnetic objective.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SEM AND TEM

SEM is based on scattered electrons while TEM is based on transmitted

electrons.
SEM focuses on the samples surface and its composition whereas TEM provides
the details about internal composition. Therefore, TEM can show many
characteristics of the sample, such as morphology, crystallization, stress or even
magnetic domains. On the other hand, SEM shows only the morphology of
samples.
The sample in TEM has to be cut thinner whereas there is no such need with SEM
sample.
TEM has much higher resolution than SEM.

NAME: R DILLI KRISHNA

REGDNO:15BEE1218

SEM allows for large amount of sample to be analyzed at a time whereas with
TEM only small amount of sample can be analyzed at a time.
SEM is used for surfaces, powders, polished & etched microstructures, IC chips,
chemical segregation whereas TEM is used for imaging of dislocations, tiny
precipitates, grain boundaries and other defect structures in solids
In TEM, pictures are shown on fluorescent screens whereas in SEM, picture is
shown on monitor.
SEM also provides a 3-dimensional image while TEM provides a 2-dimensional
picture.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Electron microscopes do not naturally produce color images, as a SEM produces a single
value per pixel; this value corresponds to the number of electrons received by the detector
during a small period of time of the scanning when the beam is targeted to the (x,y) pixel
position.

NAME: R DILLI KRISHNA

REGDNO:15BEE1218
This single number is usually represented, for each pixel, by a grey level, forming a
"black-and-white" image However, several ways have been used to get color electron
microscopy images
False color using a single detector

On compositional images of flat surfaces (typically BSE):

The easiest way to get color is to associate to this single number an arbitrary color, using
color look-up table(i.e. each grey level is replaced by a chosen color). This method is
known as false color On a BSE image, false color may be performed to better distinguish
the various phases of the sample.

On textured-surface images:

As an alternative to simply replacing each grey level by a color, a sample observed by an

oblique beam allows to create an approximative topography image (see further section
"Photometric 3D rendering from a single SEM image"). Such topography can then be
processed by 3D-rendering algorithms for a more natural rendering of the surface texture

Surface of a kidney stone

The same after re-processing of the color from the estimated topography

NAME: R DILLI KRISHNA

REGDNO:15BEE1218

SEM image of a diagenetically altered discoaster

The same image after similar colorization

SEM image coloring
Very often, published SEM images are artificially colored. This may be done for aesthetic
effect, to clarify structure or to add a realistic appearance to the sample] and generally
does not add information about the specimen
Coloring may be performed manually with photo-editing software, or semi-automatically
with dedicated software using feature-detection or object-oriented segmentation

SEM image of Cobaea scandens pollen

NAME: R DILLI KRISHNA

REGDNO:15BEE1218

The same after semi-automatic coloring. Arbitrary colors help identifying the various
elements of the structure

Colored SEM image of Tradescantiapollen and stamens

Some of the examples of application presented in the form of microphotographs are taken
from literature, while others represent research work undertaken at the Department of the
Materials Science and Technology, Laboratory of Electron Microscopy of the ClujNapoca Technical University.
The second group of examinations were performed using the SEM type Jeol 5600 LV,
which has the following characteristic features:
3.5 nm resolution with secondary electrons;
300,000 magnitude;
examination of non-conductive specimens (ceramic, biological, medical etc.) in
reduced vacuum (up to 130 Pa) with backscattered electrons (maximal magnitude
5000);
local quantitative chemical analysis based on the characteristic X-ray spectrum for
component elements ranging between Bor and Uranium, with 0.01% detection limits.
Subsequently we made report on the images that represent our investigations on the
nanostructured materials. For the other applications examples there are data below the
figures.
Fig. 4 presents the image of Au film obtained by vacuum deposition. One can observe
discreet structural formations having dimensions below 40 nm.
Figs. 5 and 6 present the microscopically and compositional analysis of a Zn layer
deposited by electrolytic process. There were obtained nanostructured systems with
dimensions ranged between 100 and 300 nm, for anticorrosive protection.

NAME: R DILLI KRISHNA

REGDNO:15BEE1218
In Figs. 7 and 8 one can observe the nanostructures of about 100 nm of some compounds
based on gold deposited on ceramic substrate.

Fig. 9. Carbon nanotubes (examination in the Electron Microscopy

Laboratory, Cluj-Napoca Technical University).

Fig. 10. Carbon nanotubes, high resolution SEM micrograph (Jeol

7400 F micro- scope) [5].