Recent TEM developments applied to quantum structures

Abstract

To shed light on these confined properties, a technique with a high energy-and-spatial resolution is of absolute need. Modern transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is the most suitable technique for a direct measurement of optical and structural properties at a nanometer scale. Thanks to the successful construction of aberration corrected transmission electron microscopes, the mapping of atomic positions with high accuracy becomes a routine experiment enabling therefore a more intuitive interpretation of structural deformation (strain). In addition, the recent development in energy-filters, especially when coupled to monochromated electron-beams, measurements of physical properties are achieved with unprecedented performances. The case of individual buried GaN/(AlGaN) quantum dots is discussed.