Three-Dimensional Transmission Electron Microscopy: A Novel Imaging and
Characterization Technique with Nanometer Scale Resolution for Materials Science
Three-dimensional transmission electron microscopy (3D-TEM), effectuated by multiple imaging of a sample
combined with image analysis, offers a new approach in materials science to obtain 3D information of complex
solid materials. Here we report first-of-its-kind results that have been obtained with zeolite materials. Virtual
cross-sections and volume rendering of the 3D reconstruction of a metal/zeolite crystal (Ag/NaY) give
unequivocal information on the location of the silver particles (10-40 nm in diameter). Virtual cross-sections
of the 3D reconstruction of an acid-leached mordenite show the three-dimensional mesoporous channel system
(3-20 nm in diameter) with a clarity and definition not seen before