Secondary electron emission in the scanning electron microscope

This paper surveys experimental results concerned with secondary electron emission of surfaces bombarded by primary electrons with respect to scanning electron microscopy. The energy distribution, the angular distribution, and the yield of secondary electrons from metals and insulators are reviewed as well as the escape depth of the secondary electrons and the contribution of the backscattered electrons to the secondary electron yield. The different detectors for secondary electrons in the scanning electron microscope are described. The contrast mechanisms in the scanning electron microscope, material, topography, voltage, magnetic, and crystallographic orientation contrast based on secondary electron emission, as well as the lateral resolution, depending among other things on the spatial distribution of the emitted secondary electrons, are discussed.