Using the FIB to characterize nanoparticle materials

  1. C. R. PERREY1,
  2. C. B. CARTER1,*,
  3. J. R. MICHAEL1,2,
  4. P. G. KOTULA1,2,
  5. E. A. STACH1,3,
  6. V. R. RADMILOVIC1,3

Article first published online: 21 MAY 2004

DOI: 10.1111/j.0022-2720.2004.01325.x

Issue

Journal of Microscopy

Journal of Microscopy

Volume 214, Issue 3, pages 222–236, June 2004

Additional Information

How to Cite

PERREY, C. R., CARTER, C. B., MICHAEL, J. R., KOTULA, P. G., STACH, E. A. and RADMILOVIC, V. R. (2004), Using the FIB to characterize nanoparticle materials. Journal of Microscopy, 214: 222–236. doi: 10.1111/j.0022-2720.2004.01325.x

Author Information

  1. 1

    Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, U.S.A.

  2. 2

    Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 87185-0886, U.S.A.

  3. 3

    National Center for Electron Microscopy, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, 1 Cyclotron Road Mailstop 72, Berkeley, CA 94720, U.S.A.

* Professor C. Barry Carter. Fax: +1 612 626 7246; e-mail: carter@cems.umn.edu

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 21 MAY 2004
  2. Article first published online: 21 MAY 2004
  3. Received 10 June 2003; accepted 10 December 2003

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Keywords:

  • FIB;
  • focused ion beam;
  • nanoparticle;
  • sample preparation;
  • SEM;
  • SiC;
  • SiCN;
  • TEM

Summary

In the 1–100-nm size regime, the properties of materials can differ significantly from those of their bulk counterparts. The present study applies the focused ion beam (FIB) tool to the characterization of nanoscale structures for scanning and transmission electron microscopy. The strength of this method is its ability to manufacture samples that cannot be produced using traditional means. The films of nanoparticles examined here are examples of such systems; the films are found to be not fully dense, composed of chemically heterogeneous areas and mechanically different from the substrate. Distinct advantages of the application of the FIB for characterization of nanoscale structures are highlighted for several nanoparticle structures. This successful application of FIB techniques provides a pathway to integrate the study of nanoscale production techniques and their resulting structure–property relationships.

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