Transmission Electron Microscopes (TEM)

A transmission electron microscope (TEM) functions similar to a standard microscope, but uses electrons rather than visible light. Because a TEM uses the much smaller wavelength of electrons, it can resolve details just a few angstroms in size, which is 1000 times smaller than what can be seen with a standard light microscope.

To examine a sample, the microscope sends its electron beam through the specimen, where some electrons are scattered from the beam. Unscattered electrons hit a fluorescent screen bottom of the microscope, producing a "shadow image" of the specimen that can be studied directly or photographed with a camera.