Yao Bo, Coffey Kevin R
Advanced Materials Processing and Analysis Center, Department of Mechanical, Materials and Aerospace Engineering, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL 32816, USA.
J Electron Microsc (Tokyo). 2008 Dec;57(6):189-94. doi: 10.1093/jmicro/dfn021. Epub 2008 Nov 4.
Cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy (XTEM) is a very useful technique to study the interfacial diffusion and reactions and the grain growth of thin films. However, the preparation of XTEM samples of thin films is tedious and challenging. Difficulties may include the delamination of films from the substrate, fracture of brittle substrates and differential milling rates of the substrate and the film. This paper describes an improved technique using a combination of tripod polishing and focused ion beam milling to prepare XTEM samples of thin films. The technique can be widely used for high-throughput production of samples having varying film and substrate properties. Two different geometries are introduced. The first one is suitable for XTEM sample preparation of most films at a high yield rate, but with a limited view area. The other geometry is able to give a larger view area and is more suitable for thicker films. The technique is illustrated by an example of the sample preparation of Fe/Pt multilayer films on SiO2/Si substrates.
横截面透射电子显微镜（XTEM）是研究薄膜界面扩散、反应以及晶粒生长的一项非常有用的技术。然而，制备薄膜的XTEM样品既繁琐又具有挑战性。困难可能包括薄膜与衬底的分层、脆性衬底的断裂以及衬底和薄膜不同的研磨速率。本文描述了一种改进技术，该技术结合了三角架抛光和聚焦离子束研磨来制备薄膜的XTEM样品。该技术可广泛用于高通量生产具有不同薄膜和衬底特性的样品。介绍了两种不同的几何形状。第一种适用于以高产率制备大多数薄膜的XTEM样品，但视场面积有限。另一种几何形状能够提供更大的视场面积，更适合较厚的薄膜。通过在SiO2/Si衬底上制备Fe/Pt多层膜样品的例子来说明该技术。
