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Evo Sem Sop
Evo Sem Sop
May 2017
ELECTRON OPTICS
The patented EVO® column is the area of the SEM, where electrons are emitted, accelerated,
deflected, focused, and scanned. Main characteristics of the EVO® optics are the condenser and
objective lenses.
1 W or LaB6 cathode
2 Gun alignment and emission display coils
3 Double condenser system
4 Mechanical mid column aperture changer
5 Scanning and stigmator coils
6 Objective lens with through the lens
pumping
7 CZ BSD
8 Specimen
Gun: The electrons are accelerated by the acceleration voltage (UEHT). The filament is heated by
applying the filament current. Electrons are emitted from the heated filament.
EHT: The emitted electrons are accelerated by the acceleration voltage (UEHT).
Gun Alignment and Display Coils: The electron beam is centered by the gun alignment and
emission coils (2).
Condensers: A double condenser system (3) allows the continuous regulation of the probe
current.
Apertures: The electron beam passes through the currently selected aperture in the mechanical
mid column aperture changer (4) to ensure optimum quality of beam is maintained.
Scanning and Stigmator Coils: The scanning coils (5) move the electron beam in a point-by-
point scan over the specimen surface. The stigmator coils (5) compensate for astigmatism, so that
the electron beam becomes rotationally symmetrical.
Objective Lens: The electron beam exits the objective lens (6)
Signal Detection: When the primary electron beam hits the specimen, certain interaction signals
are generated, which are recorded by various detectors, such as the CZ BSD (7).
SIGNAL DETECTION
The interaction products most frequently used for the generation of images in scanning electron
microscopy are secondary electrons (SE) and backscattered electrons (BSE).
PRINCIPLES OF DETECTION
The ET-SE, or Everhart-Thornley, detector is mounted on the wall of the specimen chamber, and
is therefore classed as a ‘chamber detector’. Due to its position in the chamber, the SE2 detector
views the specimen laterally.
The SE2 detector allows detection of secondary electrons with a small backscattered component.
Secondary electrons moving towards the detector are attracted by the collector and are directed
towards the scintillator accelerated by the scintillator voltage.
Operating Principle
When the high energy electrons hit the scintillator layer (2), photons are generated inside the
scintillator. These photons are directed out of the vacuum system through a light pipe (3) and are
transferred to the photomultiplier (5). The photomultiplier multiplies the flashes of light and
outputs a signal that can be used for imaging.
Collector Bias Voltage
The Detectors tab of the SEM Control panel allows you to adjust the collector bias voltage in the
range –250 V to +400 V in steps of 1 V. This voltage generates a bias in front of the detector.
The bias attracts the low energy SE electrons and accelerates them towards the detector. For all
standard applications the collector bias voltage is usually set to 300 V.
It is also possible to set the collector bias voltage to a negative value. This generates a field that
deflects the secondary electrons, preventing them from reaching the scintillator and contributing
to the signal. Backscattered electrons are not affected significantly by the negative bias voltage
and reach the scintillator to contribute to image information. This allows the generation of a
‘pseudo- backscattered image’, which shows enhanced topographical information.
Surface images that show enhanced topographical information can also be generated using BSE
detectors, but they do not show the shadows that can be created using the SE2 detector.
When using a positive collector bias voltage, surfaces that are tilted in the direction of the
detector are emphasized, but there are no shadowing effects.
When using a negative collector bias voltage, the image shows enhanced topographical
contrast, which arises mainly from the extreme shadowing effects. However, the fine surface
details are less visible.
Applications
The SE2 detector can be used in the complete high-voltage range.
The working distance has a significant effect on the efficiency of the SE2 detector. Shadowing
effects occur when the working distance is too short and, if the specimen is too close to the final
lens, most of the electrons will be deflected by the field of the electrostatic lens or move to the
final lens itself. This means they cannot be detected by the SE2 detector.
Depending on the specimen material and on the specimen geometry, a minimum working
distance of approximately 4 mm should be used. Extreme signal loss is likely to occur if shorter
working distances than this are used. Conversely, the SE2 detector is very good when used for
imaging at long working distances. This is particularly important for low magnification imaging
that is necessary for adjusting the orientation of the specimen holder or locating a specific area
on the specimen.
Optimal initial settings
The following settings provide a good field of view for navigating on the specimen at low
magnifications:
Initial working distance in the range 10 mm to 20 mm.
Acceleration voltage of approximately 10 kV.
RECOMMENDED SETTINGS FOR IMAGING WITH THE SE DETECTOR
Generating an Image
1. Go to the Detectors tab and select SE2 from the Detectors drop-
down list.
2. It is recommended that you select the SE2 detector to obtain the
first image, as this detector provides a good signal-to-noise ratio
even at large working distances.
3. Go to the Scanning tab and select a fast scan speed, e.g. Scan
Speed = 1 from the drop-down list.
The lower the scan speed number, the faster the electron beam is
scanned across the specimen. If the image displayed is noisy then
change the Scan Speed to 2 or 3 but no higher than 3. This will
allow you to move the specimen stage using X or Y controls on the
joystick to a suitable location for imaging.
4. Set a low magnification e.g. Mag = 500 x:
3. Click the Reduced Raster icon or press the Reduced button on the keyboard. A small
scan frame is shown. The image outside the scan frame is frozen. Use the mouse to change size,
shape and position of the reduced raster area.
4. Focus the image in the reduced raster.
5. Aperture alignment (OPTIONAL):
a. In the Apertures tab, tick the Focus Wobble checkbox.
The Focus Wobble is a function that sweeps the focus of the
objective lens backwards and forwards through the focus on the
specimen plane. If the aperture is slightly misaligned, a lateral
shift in the image will be observed.
Intensity of wobble can be adjusted by using the Wobble Amplitude scroll bar. Set Wobble
Amplitude to between 60 % and 70 %. Wobble speed can be
accelerated by ticking the Wobble Fast checkbox.
b. Align the mid column aperture by carefully adjusting the X
and Y micrometer gauges to eliminate lateral image shift. The
specimen should be seen to pulsate and not to shift.
c. Untick the Focus Wobble checkbox.
6. In the Scanning tab, set Scan Speed = 7.
7. Bring the image into focus at a higher magnification than the desired final magnification.
Typically double the desired magnification.
8. Toggle to Fine in the status bar. Use Coarse and Fine mode of adjustment where appropriate.
9. Correct astigmatism:
a. Select a detail (e.g. a mark or an edge) on the specimen surface.
b. Click the Reduced Raster icon. Ensure the selected detail is in the raster
c. Use Stigmator X and Stigmator Y knobs on the keyboard to obtain the sharpest possible
image. This is similar to focusing. In order to obtain a well-focused image, it is prudent to
adjust focus and stigmation a number of times before moving to the next stages of image
recording.
10. Deactivate the reduced raster and reduce the magnification to the required value.
STANDBY (filament stays at 1st peak I=1.4 A) recommended for switching between
users
EHT OFF recommended for switching between
samples
GUN SHUTDOWN recommended for long periods of
time
2. Bring the stage down and go to Stage Initialization, wait until stage is stops at initial position.
3. Go to the Vacuum tab and click VENT to vent the specimen chamber. The same can be
achieved by left-click on VAC indicator in the status bar and click VENT.
A message appears asking: ’Are you sure you want to vent?’ Confirm by clicking on YES.
4. When vented roll out chamber door slowly, careful and watch out for gun.
5. Unload the sample holder. ALWAYS, use gloves to remove your samples.
6. Carefully close the chamber door and click Pump in the SEM Control panel. The same can be
achieved by left-click on VAC indicator in the status bar and click PUMP.
7. Wait until VAC is ready .
8. Close the SmartSEM® user interface by selecting File/Log Off from the menu. A window
appears asking for confirmation to close the session.
9. Confirm by clicking on the Yes button.
10. Exit EM Server.
IMPORTANT:
Don’t forget to log out from tool by using your FOM account.
RECOMMENDED SETTING FOR DIFFERENT TYPES OF SPECIMEN
AND DETECTION MODES
Conductive Specimens:
Non-conductive Specimens: