Every Electron Counts

As electron microscopy continues to push the bounds of what we used to think was possible, it is important to take time to reflect on our fundamentals and how we can continue to demonstrate good rigorous investigation with an eye towards reproducibility.

Using dose management solutions allows a microscopist to fully understand their experiment and take into consideration all the beam effects on the sample. While some beam interactions are immediately visible, such as the knock-on damage in many 2D materials, other interactions can be more subtle. In samples with varying knock on sensitivity for example, prolonged exposure to differing dose rates can lead to inaccuracies in EDS or EELS. This can lead to issues with reproducibility, an issue very critical in the modern collaborative workspace of electron microscopy. The central question is how well can you truly know the dose rate and total dose each region of your sample was exposed to during your experiment.

By combining dose tracking software with our Synchronicity machine vision platform, we can now track sample irradiation whenever the sample is exposed, whether or not you’re even recording images. This results in a map of your sample showing precisely how much dose each region experienced at any point in your experiment. This solution has enabled us to demonstrate repeatable dose effects across different microscope platforms, columns, and countries. All of this is accomplished automatically on your microscope, no longer requiring post facto calculation or consideration. We look forward to applying this technology to help understand the precise mechanisms behind intentional and unintentional beam interactions in TEM going forward!