Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-jkksz Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-27T09:54:21.024Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

A Simple Metric for Determining Resolution in Optical, Ion, and Electron Microscope Images

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 May 2015

Alexandra E. Curtin ,
Ryan Skinner  and
Aric W. Sanders
Alexandra E. Curtin*
Affiliation:
Boulder Laboratories, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, CO 80305, USA
Ryan Skinner
Affiliation:
Boulder Laboratories, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, CO 80305, USA
Aric W. Sanders
Affiliation:
Boulder Laboratories, National Institute of Standards and Technology, Boulder, CO 80305, USA
*
*Corresponding author. alexandra.curtin@nist.gov
Get access

Abstract

A resolution metric intended for resolution analysis of arbitrary spatially calibrated images is presented. By fitting a simple sigmoidal function to pixel intensities across slices of an image taken perpendicular to light–dark edges, the mean distance over which the light–dark transition occurs can be determined. A fixed multiple of this characteristic distance is then reported as the image resolution. The prefactor is determined by analysis of scanning transmission electron microscope high-angle annular dark field images of Si<110>. This metric has been applied to optical, scanning electron microscope, and helium ion microscope images. This method provides quantitative feedback about image resolution, independent of the tool on which the data were collected. In addition, our analysis provides a nonarbitrary and self-consistent framework that any end user can utilize to evaluate the resolution of multiple microscopes from any vendor using the same metric.

Keywords

microscopyhelium ion microscopyoptical microscopyRayleigh criterion
Type
Techniques and Equipment Development
Information
Microscopy and Microanalysis , Volume 21 , Issue 3 , June 2015 , pp. 771 - 777
Copyright
© Microscopy Society of America 2015 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Cole, R.W., Thibault, M., Bayles, C.J., Eason, B., Girard, A.-M., Jinadasa, T., Opansky, C., Schulz, K. & Brown, C.M. (2013). International test results for objective lens quality, resolution, spectral accuracy and spectral separation for confocal laser scanning microscopes. Microsc Microanal 19, 1653–1668.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ishitani, T. & Sato, M. (2002). A method for personal expertise-independent evaluation of image resolution in scanning electron microscopy. Scanning 24, 191–203.Google Scholar
Ishitani, T. & Sato, M. (2004). Contrast-to-gradient method for the evaluation of image resolution in scanning electron microscopy. J Electron Microsc 51, 369–382.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Joy, D.C., Michael, J. & Griffin, B. (2010). Evaluating SEM performance from the contrast transfer function. In Proc. of SPIE, Vol. 7638 , Raymond, C.J. (Ed.), pp. 76383J. Bellingham, WA USA: SPIE Press.Google Scholar
Postek, M.T. & Vladar, A.E. (1998). Image sharpness measurement in scanning electron microscopy—Part I. Scanning 20, 1–9.Google Scholar
Spence, J.C.H. (2008). Measurement of electron-optical parameters. In High-Resolution Electron Microscopy, 3rd ed. Brooks, R.J., Heuer, A., Marks, T.J., Ruhle, M., Sutton, A.P., Cheetha, A., Hirsch, P., Pettifor, D.G., Silcox, J., Tirrel, M.V. & Vitek, V. (Eds.), pp. 286–306. Oxford: OUP.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ward, B.W., Notte, J.A. & Economou, N.P. (2006). Helium ion microscope: A new tool for nanoscale microscopy and metrology. J Vac Sci Technol B 24, 2871–2874.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Williams, D.B. & Carter, C.B. (2009). Transmission Electron Microscopy: A Textbook for Materials Science. New York and Philadelphia: Springer Science & Business Media.Google Scholar
Xin, Y., Kynoch, J., Han, K., Liang, Z., Lee, P.J., Larbalestier, D.C., Su, Y.-F., Nagahata, K., Aoki, T. & Longo, P. (2013). Facility implementation and comparative performance evaluation of probe-corrected TEM/STEM with Schottky and cold field emission illumination. Microsc Microanal 19, 487–495.Google Scholar