Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM)
Instrumentation
MCL currently has several scanning electron microscopes, a field emission scanning electron microscope, and an environmental scanning electron microscope. Click on the instruments below to learn more about each one:
- Hitachi S-3500N(174 MRL Building)
- Hitachi S-3000H (175 MRL Building)
- FEI Philips XL-20 (6/7 Hosler Building)
- JEOL 6700F Field Emission SEM (6/7/Hosler)
- FEI Quanta 200 Environmental SEM (6/7 Hosler)
Technique Description
Scanning Electron Microscopy uses a focused electron beam to scan small areas of solid samples. Secondary electrons are emitted from the sample and are collected to create an area map of the secondary emissions. Since the intensity of secondary emission is very dependent on local morphology, the area map is a magnified image of the sample. Spatial resolution is as high as 1 nanometer for some instruments, but 4 nm is typical for most. Magnification factors can exceed 500,000. Backscattered electrons (BSE) and characteristic X-rays are also generated by the scanning beam and many instruments can utilize these signals for compositional analysis of microscopically small portions of the sample.
Sample requirements
Sample requirements vary with instrument and the analysis desired. Please speak with the technical staff members about specific sample requirement for your analytical project.
Rates
Click here to view current pricing rates
User Policies, Procedures, and Training
Please contact the technical staff members directly about training requirements for instrumentation.