A Technique for the Preparation of Thin-Film Cross-Sections for Transmission Electron Microscopy

Abstract

ABSTRACTA number of techniques for producing TEM cross-sections of thin films have been described in recent years as the need for improved and more-thorough microstructural study of thin-film materials has grown. We have developed a method for producing such cross-sections which involves little sophisticated equipment other than an ion mill for thinning. Following the method of Bravman and Sinclair (J. Elec. Micrs. Tech 1,53–61 (1984)), the film of interest is either deposited on or epoxied to a silicon wafer and a composite of six silicon beams (=3mm × 25mm × 0.5mm) is fabricated. Slices are cut from this composite perpendicular to the film plane, and each slice is mechanically thinned by a series of simple grinding and polishing steps to ∼ 50–100μm. Dimpling is not necessary. The specimen is mounted onto a slotted TEM grid which provides a vehicle for safe handling, and the specimen is ion milled to perforation. We have found the technique to be relatively fast, reliable, and simple. Its success hinges on minimizing the amount of direct handling required when the specimen is thin and fragile. We present a detailed recipe describing its various steps and show typical results from studies of thin films for data-storage applications.