Contrast Mechanisms in the Scanning Low Energy Electron Microscopy

0205642 - UPT-D 20030024 RIV US eng J - Journal Article
Müllerová, Ilona - Frank, Luděk
Contrast Mechanisms in the Scanning Low Energy Electron Microscopy.
Microscopy and Microanalysis. Roč. 9, Sup. 3 (2003), s. 120 - 121. ISSN 1431-9276. E-ISSN 1435-8115.
[MC 2003. Dresden, 07.09.2003-12.09.2003]
R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IPP1050128; GA AV ČR IAA1065304
Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z2065902
Keywords : scanning electron microscope * primary electrons * cathode lens
Subject RIV: JA - Electronics ; Optoelectronics, Electrical Engineering
Impact factor: 1.648, year: 2003

The SEM instruments, marketed at the present time, cover the range of impact energies of primary electrons down to 1 keV. Systems with compound objective lenses, containing a retarding field element, extend this range down to about 200 eV and the cathode lens (CL) equipped devices allow using arbitrarily low impact energy at acceptable resolution [1]. Consequently, the electron energy becomes a mere parameter of the SEM image and all contrast mechanisms, excited by electron impact, appear as equally available. Similarly, the strict distinguishing between kinds of information mediated by seconary (SE) and backscattered (BSE) electrons, respectively, is less relevant with novel detector principles employing acceleration of emitted electrons and conversion of accelerated signal species to slow SE. A CL equipped SEM detects SE and BSE together so that both should be always considered with any particular family of contrasts.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0101255