Experimental and theoretical characterization of structure in thin disordered films.

The electron microscope provides an ideal environment for the structural analysis of small volumes of amorphous and polycrystalline materials by enabling the collection of scattering information as a function of energy loss and momentum transfer. The scattered intensity at zero energy loss can be readily processed to a reduced density function, providing information on nearest-neighbour distances and bond angles. A method for collecting and processing the scattered intensity, which allows for the collection of an energy-loss spectrum for a range of momentum transfers, is discussed.