Electron Optic Documents

The ability to increase the probe current for fast microanalysis, while still maintaining a small spot size and small volume of excitation for high resolution, has been the holy grail of microanalysis in SEM. One of the unique features of JEOL’s FE-SEMs is the patented Aperture Angle Control Lens (ACL). This lens automatically optimizes for both high resolution imaging at low probe currents and high spatial resolution X-ray analysis at high probe currents with a seamless transition between the two.

High resolution structure determination by electron cryo-microscopy (cryoEM) and Single Particle Analysis (SPA) has progressed to the point where structures can be determined routinely to better than 3Å on a 300 kV microscope. Pioneering efforts have shown that similar results can also be achieved on 200 kV platforms. Similarly, efforts are underway to allow for a structure determination within a single day or even less. Here, we show results from Merk et al. at NIH from the JEOL CRYO ARM™ 200 obtained on beta-galactosidase at 1.8Å resolution1. The 3D map shows surprising details in the map reflecting the high resolution quality of the data.

High resolution structure determination by electron cryo-microscopy (cryoEM) and Single Particle Analysis (SPA) has progressed to the point where structures can be determined routinely to better than 2Å on a 300 kV microscope. Here, we show results from Kato et al. at1 Osaka University from the JEOL CRYO ARM™ 300 installed at SPring8 (Riken, Japan), that was obtained on mouse heavy chain apo-ferritin at 1.5Å resolution. The 3D map shows surprising details in the map reflecting the high resolution quality of the data.

Micro electron diffraction, or microED, is a technique aimed at solving structures of biological macromolecules by electron diffraction. Barn-storming work by the group from Prof. Gonen showed the impressive impact and promise of this technique1. The technique borrows from X-ray crystallography in that precession techniques are used for data collection and that much of the well-established software for solving structures by X-ray crystallography can be used for microED. However, it differs in a fundamental way in that electrons are used, which, owing to the substantially larger scattering cross-section of electrons with biological matter, means much smaller crystals can be used.

JEOL now offers both simple and advanced automation solutions, giving users the capability to develop protocols that fit their exact imaging needs. When paired with best-in- class AI-driven auto-function technology (auto focus, auto astigmatism correction, auto brightness/contrast), JEOL’s automation solutions are fast, reliable, reproducible, and applicable to a wide range of applications.

We want you to know what SEM can do. We hope you will discover the microscopic beauty of the biological world. We hope that you will find this photo album we created as useful if you wish to observe biological samples in the future.

Scanning electron microscopes (SEM) coupled with an energy dispersive X-ray detector (EDS) are used extensively to provide insight into a sample’s chemical makeup. This SEM-EDS technique can provide information on the elements present, their relative concentrations and spatial distribution over very small volumes (micron and some instances nanometer scale).

In this study, we combined a newly designed windowless EDS and SXES, and tried to establish a simple method to analyze the chemical state of Si negative electrodes in charged states.

The holy grail of nanoscale analysis with EDS is to quickly analyze any features which can be imaged in the SEM. However, for nanoscale features this is complicated by that fact that X-ray spatial resolution is typically larger than SEM imaging resolution. Figure 1 shows EDS maps from an integrated circuit cross section at 15kV and 6kV using a W SEM and an FE SEM, as well as the approximate X-ray signal depths at those voltages.

Biological SEM comparisons and Materials SEM comparisons