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Atom Probe Microscopy and its Future

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 February 2011

T. F. Kelly,
P. P. Camus,
D. J. Larson and
L. M. Holzman
T. F. Kelly
Affiliation:
Materials Science Program, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706Applied Superconductivity Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706
P. P. Camus
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706Applied Superconductivity Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706
D. J. Larson
Affiliation:
Materials Science Program, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706Applied Superconductivity Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706
L. M. Holzman
Affiliation:
Materials Science Program, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706Applied Superconductivity Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706
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Abstract

Much of the current activity and excitement in materials science involves processing and understanding materials at the atomic scale. Accordingly, it is necessary for materials scientists to control and characterize materials at the atomic level. There are only a few microscopies that are capable of providing information about the structure of materials at the atomic level: the atom probe field ion microscope, the high resolution transmission electron microscope, and the scanning tunneling microscope. The three-dimensional atom probe (3DAP) determines the 3D location and elemental identity of each atom in a sample. It is the only technique that provides 3D information at the atomic scale.

The origin and underlying concepts behind the 3DAP are described. Several examples of actual images from existing 3DAPs are shown with emphasis on nanometer-scale analysis. Current limitations of the technique and expected future developments in this form of microscopy are described. It is our opinion that 3D atomic-scale imaging will be an indispensable tool in materials science in the coming decades.

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