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History
An account of the early history of SEM has been presented by McMullan. Although Max Knoll produced a photo with a 50 mm object-field-width showing channeling contrast by the use of an electron beam scanner,[it was Manfred von Ardenne who in 1937 invented a microscope with high resolution by scanning a very small raster with a demagnified and finely focused electron beam. Ardenne applied scanning of the electron beam in an attempt to surpass the resolution of the transmission electron microscope (TEM), as well as to mitigate substantial problems with chromatic aberration inherent to real imaging in the TEM. He further discussed the various detection modes, possibilities and theory of SEM, together with the construction of the first high resolution SEM. Further work was reported by Zworykin’s group, followed by the Cambridge groups in the 1950s and early 1960s headed by Charles Oatley, all of which finally led to the marketing of the first commercial instrument by Cambridge Scientific Instrument Company as the “Stereoscan” in 1965, which was delivered to DuPont.
