Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM)

An electron microscope produces images of the surface of a sample with the help of an electron beam. This technique enables much larger magnifications than are possible with an optical microscope. Measurements are carried out with a FEI Quanta 3D FEG SEM, which enables magnifications of 30x to 1,000.000x with a resolution of 2 nm. In addition, an EDX (Energy Dispersive X-ray) probe is available for identifying the elements present in the sample. SEM analysis makes it possible to visualize sample surfaces in great detail. Furthermore, (very) small impurities or foreign elements in a sample can be visualized and identified by means of elemental analysis.