Vacuum Methods in Electron Microscopy. By Wilbur C. Bigelow

Microstructural evolution in two in situ reinforced composite systems, one produced by partial reduction and the other by grain growth, has been examined over a range of size scales using light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Metal-ceramic matrix composites were formed by the partial reduction of Al₂O₃–Cr₂O₃ solid solutions to form Cr metal particles in an Al₂O₃–Cr₂O₃ matrix which had a lower Cr₂O₃ concentration. In a second system, grain growth of Si₃N₄ during liquid phase sintering produced large, whisker-like grains in a fine-grained Si₃N₄ matrix, bonded by an oxynitride phase. The mechanisms controlling microstructural evolution in these two systems were examined.     

The Imaging Of Surface Step Structures By Dark Field Electron Microscopy

The dark field imaging of monatomic surface steps is studied by weak beam electron microscopy using reflections in higher order Laue zones. Dynamical theory calculations of the step intensities and of the diffuse background intensity in various diffracting conditions are in moderately good agreement with experimental observation on (111) thin films of gold. From grooving effects visible at incoherent twin boundaries, the boundary energy is estimated to be about one-third of the surface energy. The extension of the method to other crystal surfaces or other materials is discussed.     

Professor H. Hashimoto,Hon. F.R.M.S

Book reviewed in this article: Thin Foil Preparation for Electron Microscopy. By P. J. Goodhew. An Introduction to the Optical Microscope. By Savile Bradbury. Techniques in Immunocytochemistry, Volume 3. Edited by G. R. Bullock and P. Petrusz. X-Ray Microanalysis in Electron Microscopy for Biologists. By A. J. Morgan. Self-Assessment in Histological Techniques. By John D. Bancroft and Brian T. Chalk. X-ray Microanalysis in Electron Microscopy for Biologists. By A. J. Morgan.