Scientific Achievement
A monochromated scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) directly measures the local temperature at the nanoscale.
Significance and Impact
Heat flow and dissipation often depend on nanoscale features in a material, yet methods to reveal temperature at the nanoscale have been lacking.
Research Details
Electron energy gain and loss spectra are acquired in a monochromated, aberration-corrected STEM (MAC-STEM); peak positions and intensity ratios directly measure the temperature (no calibration needed).
The behavior of atomic vibrations (phonons) in the of the material are revealed as a function of temperature, providing a direct link to theoretical predictions.
J. C. Idrobo, A. R. Lupini, T. Feng, R. R. Unocic, F. S. Walden, D. S. Gardiner, T. C. Lovejoy, N. Dellby, S. T. Pantelides, and O. L. Krivanek, "Temperature measurement by a nanoscale electron probe using energy gain and loss spectroscopy," Phys. Rev. Lett. 120, 095901 (2018). DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.120.095901
