Messung der elastischen Elektronenbeugungsintensitäten polykristalliner Aluminium-Schichten

Background optimization of powder electron diffraction for implementation of the e-PDF technique and study of the local structure of iron oxide nanocrystals

The local structural characterization of iron oxide nanoparticles is explored using a total scattering analysis method known as pair distribution function (PDF) (also known as reduced density function) analysis. The PDF profiles are derived from background-corrected powder electron diffraction patterns (the e-PDF technique). Due to the strong Coulombic interaction between the electron beam and the sample, electron diffraction generally leads to multiple scattering, causing redistribution of intensities towards higher scattering angles and an increased background in the diffraction profile. In addition to this, the electron-specimen interaction gives rise to an undesirable inelastic scattering signal that contributes primarily to the background. The present work demonstrates the efficacy of a pre-treatment of the underlying complex background function, which is a combination of both incoherent multiple and inelastic scatterings that cannot be identical for different electron beam energies. Therefore, two different background subtraction approaches are proposed for the electron diffraction patterns acquired at 80 kV and 300 kV beam energies. From the least-square refinement (small-box modelling), both approaches are found to be very promising, leading to a successful implementation of the e-PDF technique to study the local structure of the considered nanomaterial.

Electron diffraction characterization of nanocrystalline materials using a Rietveld-based approach. Part I. Methodology

Quantitative microstructural characterization of nanocrystalline materials based on Rietveld refinement of electron diffraction patterns has been used to explore sample characteristics. The electron microscope instrumental effects have been considered.

Transmission electron microscopy is a powerful experimental tool, very effective for the complete characterization of nanocrystalline materials by employing a combination of imaging, spectroscopy and diffraction techniques. Electron powder diffraction (EPD) pattern fingerprinting in association with chemical information from spectroscopy can be used to deduce the identity of the crystalline phases. Furthermore, EPD has similar potential to X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) for extracting additional information regarding material specimens, such as microstructural features and defect structures. The aim of this paper is to extend a full-pattern fitting procedure, broadly used for analysing XRPD patterns, to EPD. The interest of this approach is twofold: in the first place, the relatively short times involved with data acquisition allow one to speed up the characterization procedures. This is a particularly interesting aspect in the case of metastable structures or kinetics studies. Moreover, the reduced sampling volumes involved with electron diffraction analyses can better reveal surface alteration layers in the analysed specimen which might be completely overlooked by conventional bulk techniques. The first step forward to have an effective application of the proposed methodology concerns establishing a reliable calibration protocol to take into correct account the instrumental effects and thus separate them from those determined by the structure, microstructure and texture of the analysed samples. In this paper, the methodology for determining the instrumental broadening of the diffraction lines is demonstrated through a full quantitative analysis based on the Rietveld refinement of the EPD. In this regard, a CeO₂ nanopowder reference specimen has been used. The results provide indications also on the specific features that a good calibration standard should have.

On the formation mechanisms, spatial resolution and intensity of backscatter Kikuchi patterns

The present paper is divided into two main sections. In the first, the formation mechanisms of backscatter Kikuchi patterns (BKP) are discussed on the basis of measurements on the sharpness of Kikuchi lines and on the spatial, that means the lateral and depth resolution of the technique. We propose that thermal diffuse scattering is the important incoherent scattering mechanism involved in pattern formation. This mechanism is not considered in the classical description of the origin of backscattered electrons in the scanning electron microscope (SEM) which is why there is in some important points no agreement between classical Monte-Carlo-type electron trajectory simulations and experimental results. We assume that the energy spectrum of the backscattered electrons shows, similar to the spectra in transmission electron microscopy, a sharp zero-loss peak. In the second section, we discuss the intensity of Kikuchi bands in BKP. It is shown that the kinematical theory gives-of course-not the correct intensities, but that these intensities are, on the other hand, not too far off the experimental ones. We subsequently introduce a simple intensity correction procedure that is based on the two-beam dynamical theory, originally proposed by Blackman for transmission electron diffraction patterns. It is shown by examples of diffraction patterns of niobium and silicon that this procedure leads to satisfying results, once two unknown variables (a universal constant and the exit depth of the electrons) have been empirically fit. It is assumed that in the future, this correction will improve the possibilities of phase identification by backscatter Kikuchi diffraction patterns.

Rietveld analysis of electron powder diffraction data from nanocrystalline anatase, TiO2

The structure of nanocrystalline anatase (TiO2) was successfully refined from electron powder diffraction data using the Rietveld technique. A polycrystalline sample (average crystal size about 70 A) was characterised by selected area electron diffraction in a conventional transmission electron microscope operated at 300 kV. Radially integrated intensities were extracted from digitised photographic films and used in the course of structure refinements by a standard program for Rietveld analysis. The structure was refined in space group I4(1)/amd (#141) with lattice parameters a = 3.7710(9) A and c = 9.430(2) A. The reliability factors of the refinement are Rwp = 5.2% and R(B) = 2.6%. The close agreement of the refined structural parameters with previous results obtained from neutron diffraction on coarse-grained powders proves the applicability of the method for characterising nanocrystalline powders. The present study shows that Rietveld analysis on electron powder data is a good compliment to the existing methods for accurate structural investigations on nanocrystalline materials and thin films.