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Imaging of Self‐Assembled Structures: Interpretation of TEM and Cryo‐TEM Images
Author(s) -
Friedrich Heiner,
Frederik Peter M.,
de With Gijsbertus,
Sommerdijk Nico A. J. M.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
angewandte chemie international edition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.831
H-Index - 550
eISSN - 1521-3773
pISSN - 1433-7851
DOI - 10.1002/anie.201001493
Subject(s) - sample preparation , nanoscopic scale , transmission electron microscopy , nanotechnology , materials science , electron micrographs , nanostructure , electron microscope , electron tomography , colloid , microscopy , sample (material) , scanning transmission electron microscopy , chemistry , optics , physics , chromatography
Abstract The investigation of solution‐borne nanostructures by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is a frequently used analytical method in materials chemistry. In many cases, the preparation of the TEM sample involves drying and staining steps, and the collection of images leads to the interaction of the specimen with the electron beam. Both aspects call for cautious interpretation of the resulting electron micrographs. Alternatively, a near‐native solvated state can be preserved by cryogenic vitrification and subsequent imaging by low‐dose cryogenic TEM. In this Minireview, we provide a critical analysis of sample preparation, and more importantly, of the acquisition and interpretation of electron micrographs. This overview should provide a framework for the application of (cryo)‐TEM as a powerful and reliable tool for the analysis of colloidal and self‐assembled structures with nanoscopic dimensions.