Capturing Laser Induced Dynamics of Materials via Ultrafast Transmission Electron Microscopy

Recent developments in instrumentation have made it a very exciting time to perform both fundamental and applied research in the electron microscope. In-situ microscopy is moving forward at a rapid pace with the development of gas/liquid stages that permit reaction processes to be imaged and analyzed at atomic resolution. Moreover, the development of nanosecond and faster photoemission electron sources offers the chance to move the high spatial resolution world of electron microscopy into the ultrafast world of materials dynamics. Conventional in-situ TEM coupled with ultrafast TEM can be utilized to gain a fundamental understanding of dynamic processes occurring in materials. The combination of these capabilities allow for vast improvements of in-situ TEM studies limited by video rate in that many processes span multiple time and length scales. Ultrafast in-situ electron microscopy promises to answer challenging questions in the fields ranging from materials science and chemistry to nanoscience and biology. In this presentation, examples of ultrafast electron microscopy studies will be presented for selected systems. Short lived transient processes involved in dynamic processes in materials will be discussed to obtain new insights. Additionally, the potential of novel in-situ stages for various data acquisition schemes to push the envelope of ultrafast electron microscopy for the investigation of materials will be discussed.