Development of a focused ion beam (FIB) technique to minimize X-ray fluorescence during energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) of FIB specimens in the transmission electron microscope (TEM)

A method of specimen preparation utilizing the focused ion beam (FIB) was developed to minimize X-ray fluorescence during energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) of FIB-prepared specimens in the transmission electron microscope (TEM). The method involves fabricating a specially shaped geometry called an ultra-wide double-wedge (UWDW). It was tested on polycrystalline Ni thin film (50 nm) – single-crystal Si substrate diffusion couples. The UWDW FIB method dramatically reduced the amount of extra X-ray counts and fluorescence from the specimens, thereby enabling the use of quantitative EDS to analyze FIB-prepared specimens.