Some thoughts on Source Monochromation and the Implications for Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy

Abstract

Abstract We briefly outline the factors determining the intrinsic widths of features in electron energy loss near edge structure (ELNES) measured by electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) in the transmission electron microscope (TEM). We have made estimates of the differing contributions of both the initial and final state lifetime effects in the ELNES ionisation processes and also show how these may be combined with the instrumental energy resolution. We discuss the potential benefits of source monochromation for ELNES measurements via a comparison of these theoretical estimates with experimental spectra from the literature. We show that for certain core level excitations, solid state broadening mechanisms may be the fundamental limiting factor for resolving fine detail in ELNES.