Breaking the Crowther limit: Combining depth-sectioning and tilt tomography for high-resolution, wide-field 3D reconstructions
Abstract
To date, high-resolution (<1 nm) imaging of extended objects in three-dimensions (3D) has not been possible. A restriction known as the Crowther criterion forces a tradeoff between object size and resolution for 3D reconstructions by tomography. Further, the sub-Angstrom resolution of aberration-corrected electron microscopes is accompanied by a greatly diminished depth of field, causing regions of larger specimens (>6 nm) to appear blurred or missing. We demonstrate a three-dimensional imaging method that overcomes both these limits by combining through-focal depth sectioning and traditional tilt-series tomography to reconstruct extended objects, with high-resolution, in all three dimensions. The large convergence angle in aberration corrected instruments now becomes a benefit and not a hindrance to higher quality reconstructions. A through-focal reconstruction over a 390 nm 3D carbon support containing over 100 dealloyed and nanoporous PtCu catalyst particles revealed with sub-nanometer detail the extensive and connected interior pore structure that is created by the dealloying instability.
- Authors:
-
- Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY (United States). School of Applied & Engineering Physics. Kavli Inst. at Cornell for Nanoscale Science
- Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). National Center for Electron Microscopy
- Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY (United States). Dept. of Physics
- Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY (United States). Dept. of Chemistry and Chemical Biology
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES); National Science Foundation (NSF)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1511386
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC02-05CH11231; SC0005827; FG02-11ER16210; EEC-0117770; 0646547; DMR-1120296
- Resource Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- Ultramicroscopy
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Volume: 140; Journal ID: ISSN 0304-3991
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION; tomography; scanning transmission electron microscopy; STEM; TEM; aberration correction; depth sectioning; nanoparticles; catalysts; through focal imaging; electron microscopy; Crowther criterion; 3D imaging; depth of field
Citation Formats
Hovden, Robert, Ercius, Peter, Jiang, Yi, Wang, Deli, Yu, Yingchao, Abruña, Héctor D., Elser, Veit, and Muller, David A. Breaking the Crowther limit: Combining depth-sectioning and tilt tomography for high-resolution, wide-field 3D reconstructions. United States: N. p., 2014.
Web. doi:10.1016/j.ultramic.2014.01.013.
Hovden, Robert, Ercius, Peter, Jiang, Yi, Wang, Deli, Yu, Yingchao, Abruña, Héctor D., Elser, Veit, & Muller, David A. Breaking the Crowther limit: Combining depth-sectioning and tilt tomography for high-resolution, wide-field 3D reconstructions. United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ultramic.2014.01.013
Hovden, Robert, Ercius, Peter, Jiang, Yi, Wang, Deli, Yu, Yingchao, Abruña, Héctor D., Elser, Veit, and Muller, David A. Thu .
"Breaking the Crowther limit: Combining depth-sectioning and tilt tomography for high-resolution, wide-field 3D reconstructions". United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ultramic.2014.01.013. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1511386.
@article{osti_1511386,
title = {Breaking the Crowther limit: Combining depth-sectioning and tilt tomography for high-resolution, wide-field 3D reconstructions},
author = {Hovden, Robert and Ercius, Peter and Jiang, Yi and Wang, Deli and Yu, Yingchao and Abruña, Héctor D. and Elser, Veit and Muller, David A.},
abstractNote = {To date, high-resolution (<1 nm) imaging of extended objects in three-dimensions (3D) has not been possible. A restriction known as the Crowther criterion forces a tradeoff between object size and resolution for 3D reconstructions by tomography. Further, the sub-Angstrom resolution of aberration-corrected electron microscopes is accompanied by a greatly diminished depth of field, causing regions of larger specimens (>6 nm) to appear blurred or missing. We demonstrate a three-dimensional imaging method that overcomes both these limits by combining through-focal depth sectioning and traditional tilt-series tomography to reconstruct extended objects, with high-resolution, in all three dimensions. The large convergence angle in aberration corrected instruments now becomes a benefit and not a hindrance to higher quality reconstructions. A through-focal reconstruction over a 390 nm 3D carbon support containing over 100 dealloyed and nanoporous PtCu catalyst particles revealed with sub-nanometer detail the extensive and connected interior pore structure that is created by the dealloying instability.},
doi = {10.1016/j.ultramic.2014.01.013},
journal = {Ultramicroscopy},
number = ,
volume = 140,
place = {United States},
year = {2014},
month = {2}
}
Web of Science
Figures / Tables:

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