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Quantitative Strain Mapping Applied to Aberration-Corrected HAADF Images

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 July 2006

Ana M. Sanchez ,
Pedro L. Galindo ,
Slawomir Kret ,
Meiken Falke ,
Richard Beanland  and
Peter J. Goodhew
Ana M. Sanchez
Affiliation:
Departamento de Ciencia de los Materiales e I. M. y Q.I., Universidad de Cadiz, Puerto Real 11510, Spain
Pedro L. Galindo
Affiliation:
Departamento de Lenguajes y Sistemas Informaticos, Universidad de Cadiz, Puerto Real 11510, Spain
Slawomir Kret
Affiliation:
Institute of Physics, Polish Academy of Science, Al. Lotnikow 32/46. PL-020668 Warzawa, Poland
Meiken Falke
Affiliation:
UK SuperSTEM, Daresbury Laboratory, Daresbury WA4 4AD, United Kingdom
Richard Beanland
Affiliation:
Bookham Technology, Caswell, Towcester, Northants NN12 8EQ, United Kingdom
Peter J. Goodhew
Affiliation:
Department of Engineering, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 3GH, United Kingdom
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Abstract

A systematic distortion in high-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscope (HAADF-STEM) images, which may be caused by residual electrical interference, has been evaluated. Strain mapping, using the geometric phase methodology, has been applied to images acquired in an aberration-corrected STEM. This allows this distortion to be removed and so quantitative analysis of HAADF-STEM images was enabled. The distortion is quantified by applying this technique to structurally perfect and strain-free material. As an example, the correction is used to analyse an InAs/GaAs dot-in-quantum well heterostructure grown by molecular beam epitaxy. The result is a quantitative measure of internal strain on an atomic scale. The measured internal strain field of the heterostructure can be interpreted as being due to variations of indium concentration in the quantum dot.

Keywords

HAADFSTEMdistortionnanostructuresalgorithmstrainInAs
Type
MATERIALS APPLICATIONS
Information
Microscopy and Microanalysis , Volume 12 , Issue 4 , August 2006 , pp. 285 - 294
Copyright
© 2006 Microscopy Society of America

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References

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