Sample preparation for cross-sectional examination of coatings and thi
n films by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) is the most critical
step of this characterization technique. Without a sufficiently thin
sample with a minimum of artifacts, some of the high-resolution imagin
g and analytical techniques available in the modern analytical TEM can
not be utilized. Frequently, the cross-sectional TEM (XTEM) sample pre
paration step requires special instrumentation, extensive technical sk
ills, and long lead times. The small angle cleavage technique (SACT) h
as been successfully applied to various semiconductor materials. It ha
s the advantage of being a very fast, inexpensive, and easy technique
for XTEM sample preparation. In addition, it produces a sample with ve
ry clean surfaces without ion milling. In this paper, the technique wi
ll be briefly described. The technique can be easily accommodated into
any specimen preparation laboratory. Results for single-layered and m
ulti-layered coatings and thin films deposited on semiconductor and no
n-semiconductor substrates including Si, GaAs, sapphire, quartz, SiC,
and glass are shown to illustrate the flexibility of the technique. Th
e technique does not always work. Examples of materials systems in whi
ch it was not possible to make a suitable sample are given, and the re
asons for the failure are discussed. Published by Elsevier Science S.A
.