Beginners' Guide to Scanning Electron Microscopy

This book was developed with the goal of providing an easily understood text for those users of the scanning electron microscope (SEM) who have little or no background in the area. Instrumentation, working, image interpretation and sample preparation have been explained in a wide ranging yet succinct and practical guide to the SEM. Essential theory of specimen-beam interaction and image formation is treated in a manner that can be effortlessly comprehended by the novice SEM user. Surface structure and chemistry of materials ranging from biological, polymers, alloys to minerals, ceramics and corrosion deposits are routinely studied from micrometer to nanometer scale using the SEM. The SEM has emerged as a vital, powerful and versatile tool for the characterization of nanostructured materials and the development of nanotechnology. Ease-of-use, typically facile sample preparation, and straightforward image interpretation, combined with high resolution and high depth of field and the ability to undertake microchemical and crystallographic analysis, has made scanning electron microscopy one of the most popular techniques for characterization today. However, the wide use by professionals with diverse technical backgrounds, including life science, materials science, engineering, forensics, mineralogy, etc., and in various sectors of government, industry, and academia, emphasizes the need for an introductory text providing the basics of effective SEM imaging.