Researchers in several colleges at the University of California, Davis use an environmental scanning electron microscope to visualize and study changes in materials with time, from nanometer to the size of a whole device or system. The measurements are carried out in the working environment of materials, e.g., from water vapor to controlled type and pressure of gases. The microscopy is located at a broadly shared facility in the materials science department on the UC Davis main campus, serving users from campus, the medical center, local community colleges, industry and with high-school teachers and students in the Central Valley, California. The team uses a general theme of "Seeing in Science" to attract and increase participation from underrepresented minority students on and off campus. The environmental scanning electron microscope allows the team to demonstrate imaging of various samples on multiple length-scales at or close to their native environments with minimal need of prior sample treatment and preparation.
Acquisition of an environmental scanning electron microscopy, with a small modification by the principal investigators, enables in-situ characterization of materials and complex systems under high temperatures, applied mechanical stress, and controlled atmospheres. Operation under appropriate gas or vapor environments up to 4000 Pascals makes it possible to image insulating, electron beam-sensitive and hydrated materials and systems, such as ceramics, polymers and plant tissue. Research conducted using this microscope advances our fundamental scientific knowledge in interdisciplinary research topics, including the agglomeration kinetics of thin metal films, ceramics microstructure evolution during nanoscale processing, 3-dimensional assembly of nanostructures, fracture mechanics of bone, plant-microbe interaction for food safety, structure-functionality relationships of ocular lenses, and failure mechanisms of high-powered electronics. During the course of investigation, the researchers also identify approaches to enable data correlation between different imaging modes, disciplines, and data sources. Correlative characterization makes it possible to achieve structure-morphology-functionality relationships in entire device structures and whole organisms.
