Comparison of photon transport efficiency in simple scintillation electron detector configurations for scanning electron microscope.

The purpose of this paper is to find some general rules for the design of robust scintillation electron detectors for a scanning electron microscope (SEM) that possesses an efficient light-guiding (LG) system. The paper offers some general instructions on how to avoid the improper design of highly inefficient LG configurations of the detectors. Attention was paid to the relevant optical properties of the scintillator, light guide, and other components used in the LG part of the scintillation detector.

Overview of S(T)EM electron detectors with garnet scintillators: Some potentials and limits.

The paper is focused on a complete configuration and design of a scintillation electron detector in scanning electron and/or scanning transmission electron microscopes (S(T)EM) with garnet scintillators. All processes related to the scintillator and light guide were analyzed. In more detail, excitation electron trajectories and absorbed energy distributions, efficiencies and kinetics of scintillators, as well as the influence of their anti-charging coatings and their substrates, assigned optical properties, and light guide efficiencies of different configurations were presented and discussed.

Prospective scintillation electron detectors for S(T)EM based on garnet film scintillators.

The performance of a scintillation electron detector for a scanning electron microscope and/or a scanning transmission electron microscope (S(T)EM) based on new epitaxial garnet film scintillators was explored. The LuGAGG:Ce and LuGAGG:Ce,Mg film scintillators with chemical formula (Ce Lu Gd ) Mg (Ga Al )O were prepared and their cathodoluminescence (CL) and optical properties were studied and compared with the properties of current standard bulk single crystal YAG:Ce and YAP:Ce scintillators. More specifically, CL decay characteristics, CL emission spectra, CL intensities, optical absorption coefficients, and the refractive indices of the mentioned scintillators were measured.

Performance of SEM scintillation detector evaluated by modulation transfer function and detective quantum efficiency function.

In the paper, the SEM detector is evaluated by the modulation transfer function (MTF) which expresses the detector's influence on the SEM image contrast. This is a novel approach, since the MTF was used previously to describe only the area imaging detectors, or whole imaging systems. The measurement technique and calculation of the MTF for the SEM detector are presented.

Extended algorithm for simulation of light transport in single crystal scintillation detectors for S(T)EM.

The new extended Monte Carlo (MC) simulation method for photon transport in S(T)EM back scattered electron (BSE) scintillation detection systems of various shapes is presented in this paper. The method makes use of the random generation of photon emission from a scintillator luminescent centre and describes the trajectory of photons and the efficiency of their transport toward the photocathode of the photomultiplier tube. The paper explains a new algorithm for determining the position of interaction of the photon with the surface of the single crystal scintillator or of the light guide with nearly arbitrary shapes.