Analysis of the scanning electron microscope mirror method for studying space charge in insulators
- 1 December 1999
- journal article
- Published by AIP Publishing in Journal of Applied Physics
- Vol. 86 (11) , 5961-5967
- https://doi.org/10.1063/1.371640
Abstract
We give a detailed analysis of the scanning electron microscope mirror method for studying a cloud of charge stored near the surface of an insulator, paying particular attention to the approximations that are often made. We discuss the effect of the finite size of the experimental chamber, of the thickness of the sample, and of relativistic corrections, and we demonstrate that interpretation of the observations cannot be unique. By making a detailed computation of the electron orbits in the presence of extended sources, we then test the commonly made assumption that the method measures the radius of curvature of the equipotentials, and we show that this is only partially true. Finally, we show that the sensitivity could be improved by increasing the scattering angle.This publication has 11 references indexed in Scilit:
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