When there are sufficient crystallites within the diffraction volume of a polycrystalline sample contributing to a transmision electron Selected Area Diffraction (SAD) Pattern, the pattern appears as continuous rings and is relatively straightforward to analyze. However, when this condition is not met and there are several phases present, the pattern is complex and can be difficult to analyze. Because of the large number of individual diffraction spots comprising such a pattern, computer aided analysis is typically required. WinJade from MDI is an X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis program that will also produce an integrated circular density plot of intensitites from a 512x512 digital SAD pattern plotted against equivalent XRD 2θ values or d-spacings. These patterns can then be compared with standard diffraction databases such as the JCPDS or the NIST Crystal databases. When there are mixed "spotty" rings and continuous rings in a pattern, the intensities derived in the ICDP patterns are dependent on the manner in which the integrated intensitites are calculated.

To investigate the effects of four analysis algorithms available in WinJade, simulated binary diffraction patterns consisting of single pixel wide circles and small pixel sized spots superimposed on black constant gray level, and a gradient gray level backgrounds were analyzed. The results show that the resolution of the ICDP patterns as well as the intensitites in the patterns are affected by the intensity calculation algorithm. Application of these altorithms with actual SAD patterns of pulsed laser deposited ZnO-WS₂ films and pyrolytically deposited, mixed, transition-metlal oxide coatings of Cr, Co, and Fe on glass are presented. The results indicate that the algorithm method chosen must be chosen carefully with respect to each SAD pattern.

Electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) in the transmission electron microscope (TEM) is a powerful technique that analyzes the inelastic scattering distribution of the fast TEM electrons after they have lost energy within the sample. The resultant energy-losses are characteristic of elemental, chemical, and dielectric properties and are typically measured in one of two ways. Parallel-detection EELS spectrometers (PEELS) acquire large energy ranges of the energy-loss spectrum simultaneously for rapidly acquisition of spectral data at a single area. In contrast, the energy filtering TEM (EFTEM) acquires only a single energy band at once, but does so for thousands or even millions of image pixels simultaneously.

Spectrum-imaging involves acquisition of detailed spectroscopic data sufficient for rigorous analysis at each pixel in a digital image. An EELS spectrum image “data cube” can be acquired by stepping a focused electron probe to each pixel and filling the spectrum image one spectrum at a time. This method has the advantage of producing the highest quality spectra with lowest specimen irradiation. Alternatively, the EFTEM can also be used to fill the spectrum image one energy plane at a time. This method produces image data very quickly but the technique becomes time consuming when a large number of energy channels is collected. Data acquisition can be anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours depending on the information desired.

EELS spectrum-imaging experiments have demonstrated mapping of single atom sensitivity, sub-nanometer spatial resolution, chemical sensitivity < 1mol%, measurement of dielectric response and band-gap energy, and sensitivity to H. The ability to quantitatively measure these properties at each point in an image allows the scientist to minimize user bias as well as compare large collections of pixel values to bulk measurements.