Dose-rate controlled energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopic mapping of the metallic components in a biohybrid nanosystem

Abstract

In this work, we showcase that through precise control of the electron dose rate, state-of-the-art large solid angle energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy mapping in aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscope is capable of faithful and unambiguous chemical characterization of the Pt and Pd distribution in a peptide-mediated nanosystem. This low-dose-rate recording scheme adds another dimension of flexibility to the design of elemental mapping experiments, and holds significant potential for extending its application to a wide variety of beam sensitive hybrid nanostructures.