MRI: Acquisition of a Slow-Scan CCD Camera for a JEOL 2010F TEM

波士顿学院物理系最近购买了JEOL-2010F场发射枪(FEG)透射电子显微镜，并将其安装在新安装的JEOL Model 2010F场发射枪(FEG)电子显微镜上，用于将数字图像直接记录到计算机中，从而基本上取代了传统的TEM中的照相胶片记录介质。波士顿学院物理系最近购买了JEOL-2010F场发射枪(FEG)透射电子显微镜，并于2002年完成了安装。这种先进的透射电子显微镜目前在波士顿学院的纳米级教育和研究培训中发挥着关键作用，并在几种材料和系统的基础和应用研究中发挥着关键作用。因此，它是不列颠哥伦比亚省材料相关科学项目研究中不可或缺的工具，并被物理、化学、生物和地质与地球物理四个学系的教职员工和学生使用。我们在上述部门有许多研究项目正在进行，这些项目的成功完成在很大程度上取决于新的TEM将进行的表征工作。不幸的是，我们从一开始就无法获得与这台瞬变显微镜非常重要的附件--所要求的CCD相机。目前使用传统的照相胶片作为记录介质，这是一种昂贵、效率极低的解决方案，坦率地说，对于这样一种先进的仪器来说，这是不合适的。Ccd相机和胶片记录之间的区别类似于数码相机和胶片相机之间的区别。用胶片时，先曝光透射电子显微镜的图像，然后将胶片冲洗并固定在黑暗的房间里。之后，胶片要么在暗室里打印出来，要么扫描到电脑进行进一步的处理和分析。上述繁琐的工作可能需要几个小时甚至几天的时间，而使用CCD摄像系统可以在几分钟或一小时内完成扫描。所需的慢扫描CCD相机代表着电子显微镜的一项重大创新，因为它具有特殊的成像特性，以及与即时图像可视化和计算机处理和分析相关的好处。CCD相机的优点有很多，包括避免胶片处理过程中的延迟和化学浪费；提供更高的动态范围和改善的线性度，从而产生更好的数据质量；以立即适合处理、分析和归档的形式记录数据。CCD相机已经发展到可以在许多应用中取代胶片的程度，提供对样品和图像质量的快速反馈。此外，CCD相机的探测量子效率优于摄影乳剂，因此非常适合从生物样品、有机材料等辐射敏感材料中获取数据，而通常的照相胶片方法已证明这是极其困难或不可能的。用CCD摄像机直接采集图像可以大大缩短表征时间，同时节省大量的人力和物力。它不仅可以在极短的时间内极大地推动我们的研究，而且还为定量电子显微镜和辐射敏感材料的成像打开了新的窗口。它将对我们的缩减计划产生相当积极的影响，每两年教授一门研究生水平的课程，向所有理工系的学生开放。每学期约有6名本科生、5名研究生和4名博士后接受使用瞬变电磁的培训。所需的CCD摄像机将有助于我们的教学，学生可以在计算机上立即查看结果，反馈信息将立即指导他们优化操作程序。电子显微镜发挥重要作用的研究课题包括：涉及碳纳米管和阵列的新型电子材料和现象；分子有机导体和重费米子材料中的非传统超导；解决有关铜超导体的悬而未决的问题的新方法；神经髓鞘中的膜相互作用和多肽的分子结构；金属纳米颗粒和纳米孔溶胶-凝胶玻璃的研究；以及胶体在水球中的作用的研究。对使用TEM的研究活动的支持来自NSF(DMR、CHE、IBN和ECS)、ARO、NIH(NCI)、DARPA、美国能源部、NASA、EPA、斯隆和Dreyfus Foundations以及ACS石油研究基金。在这里，我们描述几个来自多个PI程序的这些项目。

This is a proposal to acquire a slow-scan charge-coupled device (CCD) camera to be attached to a newly-installed JEOL Model 2010F field emission gun (FEG) transmission electron microscope (TEM) atBoston College, for recording digital images directly from a TEM to a computer, thus basically replacingthe photographic film recording media in a traditional TEM.The Department of Physics at Boston College recently acquired the JEOL-2010F FEG TEM and finishedits installation in 2002. This advanced TEM is currently playing a key role in education and researchtraining on the nanoscale at Boston College, and for fundamental and applied studies on several materialsand systems. It is thus an indispensable tool for research in the materials-related science programs at BC,and is utilized by faculty and students in four academic departments: Physics, Chemistry, Biology andGeology & Geophysics. We have a number of research projects going on in the above-mentioneddepartments, and the successful fulfillment of these projects depends strongly on the characterizationwork that will be carried out in the new TEM.Unfortunately, we were unable to acquire from the beginning a very important attachment to this TEM,the requested CCD camera. Traditional photographic films are presently used as the recording media,which is a costly, extremely low efficiency and frankly unsuitable solution for such an advancedinstrument. The difference between a CCD camera and film recording is analogous to that between digitaland film-based cameras. With film, TEM images are first exposed, and then the films are developed andfixed in a dark room. After that, the films are either printed in the dark room or scanned to a computer forfurther processing and analysis. The above tedious work that can cost several hours or even a few dayscan instead be accomplished in a few minutes or within an hour by using the CCD camera system.The requested slow-scan CCD camera represents a major innovation in electron microscopy because of itsexceptional imaging characteristics and the benefits associated with immediate image visualization andcomputer processing and analysis. The advantages of a CCD camera are numerous, and include avoidingdelays and chemical waste involved in film processing; providing a higher dynamic range and improvedlinearity which produce better data quality; and recording data in a form immediately suited toprocessing, analysis and archiving. CCD cameras have developed to the point where they can be usedinstead of film in a number of applications, providing rapid feedback on specimen and image quality.Moreover, the detection quantum efficiency of a CCD camera is superior to that of photographicemulsions and is therefore well-suited to acquiring data from radiation-sensitive materials, such asbiological samples, organic materials etc., which has proven to be extremely difficult or impossible by thenormal photographic film method. Direct image acquisition by a CCD camera can reduce thecharacterization time greatly while saving tremendous labor and resources. It can not only greatlyadvance our research in a significantly short turnaround time, but also open new windows for quantitativeelectron microscopy and imaging of radiation-sensitive materials. It will quite positively impact oureducational program, with a graduate-level course being taught every 2 years, open to students from allthe science departments. Each semester, about 6 undergraduate students, 5 graduate students and 4postdocs are trained to use the TEM. The requested CCD camera will facilitate our teaching in such a waythat the students can view their results immediately in a computer, and the feedback informationimmediately guide them to optimize their operation procedure.The research topics for which the TEM is playing an essential role include: novel electronic materials andphenomena involving carbon nanotubes and arrays; unconventional superconductivity in molecularorganic conductors and heavy Fermion materials; new approaches to unanswered questions about thecuprate superconductors; membrane interactions in nerve myelin and molecular organization ofpolypeptides; studies of metallic nanoparticles and nanoporous sol-gel glasses; and studies of the role ofcolloids in the hydrosphere. Support for the research activities that employ the TEM comes from NSF(DMR, CHE, IBN and ECS), ARO, NIH (NCI), DARPA, DoE, NASA, EPA, Sloan and DreyfusFoundations and the ACS Petroleum Research Fund. We describe herein several of these projectsemanating from the multiple PI's programs.