In this Letter we show that a coherent low energy electron beam (< 100
eV) can be used to obtain real space images of structures and defects
buried deep below the surface of the sample. The elastic strain field
s of such buried structures, extending to the free surface, are found
to give rise to localized phase shifts in the reflected electron waves
, resulting in excellent image contrast under slight objective lens de
focus conditions. We can now image the formation and evolution of buri
ed interfaces and defects in situ, and in real time. Because of the ve
ry low electron energies used, this imaging method is nondestructive.