Local Three-Dimensional Characterization of Nonlinear Grain Boundary Length within Bulk ZnO Using Nanorobot in SEM

Abstract

Aiming at the problems of lack of data on the nonlinear morphology to divide uneven grain boundary in bulk ceramics, a unique approach of nanorobot-based characterization of three-dimensional nonlinear structure length can be creatively proposed under scanning electron microscope to quantify the actual morphology of local micro-area grain boundary in bulk ZnO. Contour shapes of the targeted grain boundaries in plane X-Y can be imaged using SEM. Z-directional relative height differences at different positions can be sequentially probed by nanorobot. Experiments demonstrate that it is effective to characterize three-dimensional length structures of nonlinear grain boundaries in bulk materials. By quantifying Z-directional relative height differences, it can be verified to show that irregular characteristics exist in three-dimensional grain boundary length, which can extend the depth effect on nonlinear bulk conductance. Furthermore, this method can also obtain nonlinear quantitative topographies to divide grain boundaries to uneven structure in the analysis of bulk polycrystalline materials.