Nanosecond, Nanometer Movies of MEMS/NEMS Dynamics in a Standard SEM Using Time-Tagged Secondary Electrons.

Dynamic phenomena at the micro- and nanoscale underpin technologies ranging from micro- and nanoelectromechanical systems (MEMS/NEMS) actuators and sensors to quantum instrumentation and communication hardware. In this paper, we demonstrate that time-resolved full-field scanning electron microscopy (SEM) for periodically driven micro- and nanostructures offers access to their spatiotemporal dynamics. This is achieved using a conventional SEM operated with its continuous electron beam and combined with a multi-channel plate (MCP) with a time-to-digital converter (TDC) for time-resolved measurements. Effective frame rates from 3.2 × 10 6 to 1.2 × 10 9 frames per second are reached and motion tracking with ≈ 3 nm spatial and ≈ 3 ns temporal jitter is demonstrated, enabling access to both micrometer-scale and nanometer-scale motion. By bringing high temporal resolution to widely available electron microscopes without invasive column modifications, this approach enables a broad range of experiments on dynamic micro- and nanomechanical systems.