Two-dimensional Kikuchi patterns of Si as measured using an electrostatic analyser

Abstract

We present Kikuchi patterns of Si single crystals measured with an electrostatic analyser, where the kinetic energy of the diffracted electron is known with sub-eV precision. Two-dimensional patterns are acquired by rotating the crystal under computer control. This makes detailed comparison of calculated and measured distributions possible with precise knowledge of the energy of the scattered electrons. The case of Si is used to validate the method, and these experiments provide a detailed comparison of measured and calculated Kikuchi patterns. In this way, we can gain more insight on Kikuchi pattern formation in non-energy resolved measurements of conventional electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and electron channeling patterns (ECP). It was possible to identify the influence of channeling of the incoming beam on the measured Kikuchi pattern. The effect of energy loss on the Kikuchi pattern was established, and it is demonstrated that, under certain conditions, the channeling features have a different dependence on the energy loss compared to the Kikuchi lines.

Keywords: Dynamical electron diffraction theory; Electron backscatter diffraction; Electrostatic analyser; Kikuchi; Silicon.