Element-selective imaging of atomic columns in a crystal using STEM and EELS

Koji Kimoto; Toru Asaka; Takuro Nagai; Mitsuhiro Saito; Yoshio Matsui; Kazuo Ishizuka

doi:10.1038/nature06352

Element-selective imaging of atomic columns in a crystal using STEM and EELS

Koji Kimoto, Toru Asaka, Takuro Nagai, Mitsuhiro Saito, Yoshio Matsui, Kazuo Ishizuka

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

310 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Microstructure characterization has become indispensable to the study of complex materials, such as strongly correlated oxides, and can obtain useful information about the origin of their physical properties. Although atomically resolved measurements have long been possible, an important goal in microstructure characterization is to achieve element-selective imaging at atomic resolution. A combination of scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) and electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) is a promising technique for atomic-column analysis. However, two-dimensional analysis has not yet been performed owing to several difficulties, such as delocalization in inelastic scattering or instrumentation instabilities. Here we demonstrate atomic-column imaging of a crystal specimen using localized inelastic scattering and a stabilized scanning transmission electron microscope. The atomic columns of La, Mn and O in the layered manganite La_1.2Sr_1.8Mn ₂O₇ are visualized as two-dimensional images.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	702-704
Number of pages	3
Journal	Nature
Volume	450
Issue number	7170
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/nature06352
Publication status	Published - 2007 Nov 29
Externally published	Yes

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title = "Element-selective imaging of atomic columns in a crystal using STEM and EELS",

abstract = "Microstructure characterization has become indispensable to the study of complex materials, such as strongly correlated oxides, and can obtain useful information about the origin of their physical properties. Although atomically resolved measurements have long been possible, an important goal in microstructure characterization is to achieve element-selective imaging at atomic resolution. A combination of scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) and electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) is a promising technique for atomic-column analysis. However, two-dimensional analysis has not yet been performed owing to several difficulties, such as delocalization in inelastic scattering or instrumentation instabilities. Here we demonstrate atomic-column imaging of a crystal specimen using localized inelastic scattering and a stabilized scanning transmission electron microscope. The atomic columns of La, Mn and O in the layered manganite La1.2Sr1.8Mn 2O7 are visualized as two-dimensional images.",

author = "Koji Kimoto and Toru Asaka and Takuro Nagai and Mitsuhiro Saito and Yoshio Matsui and Kazuo Ishizuka",

note = "Funding Information: Acknowledgements We thank Y. Tokura and T. Kimura for providing the manganite specimen. We thank R. F. Egerton, M. Malac, K. Suenaga and H. Kurata for discussions and encouragement. We also thank M. Barfels, M. Kundmann and J. Hunt (Gatan) for their cooperation in the installation of an EEL spectrometer, and T. Yokosawa (NIMS), K. Nakamura, S. Aizawa and S. Isakozawa (Hitachi High-Technologies) for their cooperation in developing the STEM. This work is partly supported by JST-CREST, a Nanotechnology Support Project by MEXT, Japan, and by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.",

year = "2007",

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doi = "10.1038/nature06352",

language = "English",

volume = "450",

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T1 - Element-selective imaging of atomic columns in a crystal using STEM and EELS

AU - Kimoto, Koji

AU - Asaka, Toru

AU - Nagai, Takuro

AU - Saito, Mitsuhiro

AU - Matsui, Yoshio

AU - Ishizuka, Kazuo

N1 - Funding Information: Acknowledgements We thank Y. Tokura and T. Kimura for providing the manganite specimen. We thank R. F. Egerton, M. Malac, K. Suenaga and H. Kurata for discussions and encouragement. We also thank M. Barfels, M. Kundmann and J. Hunt (Gatan) for their cooperation in the installation of an EEL spectrometer, and T. Yokosawa (NIMS), K. Nakamura, S. Aizawa and S. Isakozawa (Hitachi High-Technologies) for their cooperation in developing the STEM. This work is partly supported by JST-CREST, a Nanotechnology Support Project by MEXT, Japan, and by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science.

PY - 2007/11/29

Y1 - 2007/11/29

N2 - Microstructure characterization has become indispensable to the study of complex materials, such as strongly correlated oxides, and can obtain useful information about the origin of their physical properties. Although atomically resolved measurements have long been possible, an important goal in microstructure characterization is to achieve element-selective imaging at atomic resolution. A combination of scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) and electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) is a promising technique for atomic-column analysis. However, two-dimensional analysis has not yet been performed owing to several difficulties, such as delocalization in inelastic scattering or instrumentation instabilities. Here we demonstrate atomic-column imaging of a crystal specimen using localized inelastic scattering and a stabilized scanning transmission electron microscope. The atomic columns of La, Mn and O in the layered manganite La1.2Sr1.8Mn 2O7 are visualized as two-dimensional images.

AB - Microstructure characterization has become indispensable to the study of complex materials, such as strongly correlated oxides, and can obtain useful information about the origin of their physical properties. Although atomically resolved measurements have long been possible, an important goal in microstructure characterization is to achieve element-selective imaging at atomic resolution. A combination of scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) and electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) is a promising technique for atomic-column analysis. However, two-dimensional analysis has not yet been performed owing to several difficulties, such as delocalization in inelastic scattering or instrumentation instabilities. Here we demonstrate atomic-column imaging of a crystal specimen using localized inelastic scattering and a stabilized scanning transmission electron microscope. The atomic columns of La, Mn and O in the layered manganite La1.2Sr1.8Mn 2O7 are visualized as two-dimensional images.

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Element-selective imaging of atomic columns in a crystal using STEM and EELS

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