Role of slice thickness quantification in the 3D reconstruction of FIB tomography data of nanoporous materials.

Journal: Ultramicroscopy
Published Date: Oct 25, 2023

Abstract

In focused ion beam (FIB) tomography, a combination of FIB with a scanning electron microscope (SEM) is used for collecting a series of planar images of the microstructure of nanoporous materials. These planar images serve as the basis for reconstructing the three-dimensional microstructure through segmentation algorithms. However, the assumption of a constant distance between consecutively imaged sections is generally invalid due to random variations in the FIB milling process. This variation complicates the accurate reconstruction of the three-dimensional microstructure. Using synthetic FIB tomography data, we present an algorithm that repositions slices according to their actual thickness and interpolates the results using machine learning-based methods. We applied our algorithm to real datasets, comparing two standard approaches of microstructure reconstruction: on-the-fly via image processing and ruler-based via sample structuring. Our findings indicate that the ruler-based method, combined with our novel slice repositioning and interpolation algorithm, exhibits superior performance in reconstructing the microstructure.

Authors

  • Trushal Sardhara
    Institute for Continuum and Material Mechanics, Hamburg University of Technology, Hamburg, Germany.
  • Alexander Shkurmanov
    Electron Microscopy Unit, Hamburg University of Technology, Hamburg, Germany.
  • Yong Li
    Department of Surgical Sciences, Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine, Kalamazoo, MI, United States.
  • Shan Shi
    Research Group of Integrated Metallic Nanomaterials Systems, Hamburg University of Technology, Hamburg, Germany; Institute of Materials Mechanics, Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, Geesthacht, Germany.
  • Christian J Cyron
    Institute for Continuum and Material Mechanics, Hamburg University of Technology, Hamburg, Germany; Institute of Material Systems Modeling, Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, Geesthacht, Germany.
  • Roland C Aydin
    Institute of Material Systems Modeling, Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, Geesthacht, Germany.
  • Martin Ritter
    Electron Microscopy Unit, Hamburg University of Technology, Hamburg, Germany. Electronic address: ritter@tuhh.de.

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