Grid-based electron-solid interaction simulation for characterizing high-dimensional microstructures

Ze Fu Zhou; Shu Jian Chen; Chang Xi Zheng; Hong Wen Jing; Wen Hui Duan

doi:10.1016/j.ultramic.2020.113070

Grid-based electron-solid interaction simulation for characterizing high-dimensional microstructures

Ultramicroscopy. 2020 Oct:217:113070. doi: 10.1016/j.ultramic.2020.113070. Epub 2020 Jul 2.

Authors

Ze Fu Zhou¹, Shu Jian Chen², Chang Xi Zheng³, Hong Wen Jing¹, Wen Hui Duan⁴

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Geomechanics and Deep Underground Engineering, University of Mining and Technology, Xuzhou 221008, China.
² School of Civil Engineering, University of Queensland, St Lucia 4072, Australia. Electronic address: shujian.chen@uq.edu.au.
³ School of Science, Westlake University, Hangzhou 310024, Zhejiang Province, China; Institute of Natural Sciences, Westlake Institute for Advanced Study, Hangzhou 310024, Zhejiang Province, China.
⁴ Department of Civil Engineering, Monash University, Clayton 3068, Australia. Electronic address: wenhui.duan@monash.edu.

PMID: 32688231
DOI: 10.1016/j.ultramic.2020.113070

Abstract

Three-dimensional (3D) micro- and nanostructural characterization using scanning electron microscope (SEM) and electron-solid interaction simulations (ESIS) has attracted broad interest in various research fields. However, 3D SEM-ESIS still faces key challenges in characterizing and modelling complex microstructures. In this paper, a new grid-based simulation scheme is developed to enable ESIS of complex microstructures. In contrast to the widely used region-based approach, the scheme presented here uses a grid of points to represent the spatial distribution of sample compositions, which allows numerical investigation of the effect of various geometric features such as interfacial diffusion zones and complex pores in the samples. The simulation results suggest that the interfacial diffusion zone and porosity significantly influence the scattering signals. It is believed that the presented scheme acts as a useful interpretation tool in understanding a wide range of materials and paves the way to SEM-based 3D reconstruction.

Keywords: Electron–solid interaction simulation; High-dimensional microstructure; Interfacial diffusion zone; Scanning electron microscope; Three-dimensional characterization.