| Abstract: | The analytic solution for the model of electron beam heating a moderately thick STEM/SEM specimen was used to calculate the steady state temperature profiles developed in the bulk of the specimen. For thin specimens one maximum in the temperature profile was found near the surface. The location of this maximum shifted away from the surface with increasing sample thickness. For specimens of thickness approaching the electron range two maxima were found: one close to the surface (as in thin samples) due to a ‘self-insulating’ effect, and another maximum near the sample-substrate interface—a result of very rapid increase in the energy loss by the electrons near their penetration range. These results are of particular interest for X-ray microanalysis where high beam currents are used, resulting in potentially large temperature rises in the bulk of the specimen. |
