Electron Microscopy

NREL uses electron microscopy to directly visualize materials from the microscale all the way down to the atomic scale.

This powerful technique uses a beam of electrons to generate site-specific information from a sample, allowing us to study the morphology, microstructure, and chemical composition of materials with high-spatial resolution.

Scanning Electron Microscopy

Scanning electron microscopes (SEMs) are used to analyze samples in various ways from micro- to nano-scales. Oftentimes, analysis involves imaging samples to measure the geometry and topography of microstructures, ranging anywhere from millimeters to nanometers. In many cases, imaging is simply the first step in more advanced processes, such as in-situ experiments, focused ion beam-SEM milling,  energy-dispersive spectroscopy mapping, and more.

Transmission Electron Microscopy

Transmission electron microscopes (TEMs) allow for the study of samples all the way down to the atomic scale and come in two varieties: conventional TEM passes a beam of electrons through extremely thin specimens to generate data, while scanning TEM focuses the beam of electrons down to a probe to scan across your sample. Both variations allow for different powerful forms of analysis, from measuring defects and crystal structure to atomic-resolution imaging and elemental analysis.

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