[Paper Review] Fundamentals and applications of aberration corrected high resolution transmission electron microscopy in materials science

Ranjan Datta, Sneha Kobri M.+1 more|arXiv (Cornell University)|Mar 25, 2026

Advanced Electron Microscopy Techniques and Applications0 citations

TL;DR

A review of aberration corrected phase contrast HRTEM for atomic-scale structural and electronic characterization, comparing methods and outlining quantitative imaging, simulations, and future perspectives.

ABSTRACT

In this review article fundamentals of aberration corrected phase contrast transmission electron microscopy for the structural characterization of materials at atomic length scale is presented. The word structure entails atomic arrangement as well as electronic structure information of the materials. The article summarily covers a range of topics on the basics of aberrations, aberration correctors, direct image interpretation with negative Cs phase contrast microscopy, a discussion in comparison with the competitive atomic resolution phase contrast methods for example, off-axis electron holography, electron ptychography, differential phase contrast microscopy. Additionally, various examples of quantitative imaging of materials at atomic length scale, associated image simulation and reconstruction methods for retrieving the phase information are presented. With the tremendous advancement in instrumentation and recording devices, potential future perspective of such tools and methods in solving challenging materials science problems are outlined.

Motivation & Objective

• Explain the fundamentals of aberration corrected phase contrast transmission electron microscopy for atomic-scale material characterization.
• Summarize how aberrations, correctors, and direct image interpretation enable atomic-scale imaging.
• Compare aberration corrected HRTEM with alternative phase-contrast methods (off-axis holography, ptychography, differential phase contrast).
• Describe quantitative imaging approaches, image simulations, and phase retrieval techniques.
• Outline future perspectives and potential applications in challenging materials science problems.

Proposed method

• Describe the basics of aberrations and aberration correctors in HRTEM.
• Discuss direct image interpretation using negative Cs phase contrast microscopy.
• Provide a comparative discussion with competing phase contrast methods.
• Present examples of quantitative imaging at atomic length scale, including image simulation and phase retrieval.
• Outline future instrumentation, recording device advancements, and problem-solving potential.

Experimental results

Research questions

• RQ1 What are the foundational principles of aberration corrected phase contrast in HRTEM for atomic-scale materials characterization?
• RQ2 How does aberration correction influence image interpretation and quantitative analysis at the atomic scale?
• RQ3 How does aberration corrected HRTEM compare to other atomic-scale phase-contrast methods (off-axis holography, electron ptychography, differential phase contrast)?
• RQ4 What are the current methods for image simulation and phase retrieval in this context, and how do they enable quantitative imaging?
• RQ5 What future developments in instrumentation and recording enable solving advanced materials science problems with these techniques?

Key findings

• Aberration corrected HRTEM enables atomic-length-scale structural characterization in materials science.
• Negative Cs phase contrast microscopy offers a direct interpretation pathway for features in aberration corrected images.
• The article compares aberration corrected HRTEM with competing phase-contrast methods such as off-axis holography, electron ptychography, and differential phase contrast.
• Quantitative imaging at atomic length scales is discussed alongside associated image simulation and phase retrieval approaches.
• The review outlines likely future perspectives driven by advances in instrumentation and detectors for solving challenging materials problems.