Student Seminar: Bringing Atom Probe Tomography to Transmission Electron Microscopes

Atom probe tomography (APT) can provide three-dimensional compositional information by image reconstruction with sub-nanometre resolution. However, it does not give crystallographic information such as phase details, which is crucial for gaining insight into material properties. On the other hand (scanning) transmission electron microscopy (TEM), in combination with Energy Dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and Electron Energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) can give a two-dimensional picture of compositional field as well as structural information, but the fails to detect accurately the lightweight elements from first and second period.Combining structural insights from (S)TEM with three-dimensional compositional data sets of APT emerged as a powerful method for material characterization. To push the boundaries further and facilitate a more comprehensive analysis of nanoscale matter by coupling numerous two- or three-dimensional datasets, there is a growing interest in combining (S)TEM and APT into a unified instrument. In this talk, I will discuss instrumental endeavors aimed at integrating APT into a commercial TEM while briefly touching upon the road map of individual techniques. I will lay out a short perspective on how these two powerful techniques in combination, would be able to solve the major issues in manufacturing and battery technologies. I will show a case study that successfully demonstrates the feasibility of combining in-situ 3D reconstructions of composition fields by APT with the detailed structural analysis afforded by (S)TEM. This presentation will provide valuable information for material chemists and physicists to address the problems associated with atomic scale materials characterization.