Relation Between Electron Yield and Temperature: Exploring a Novel Route to Measure the Nanoscale Temperature

Scanning electron microscope (SEM) is widely used in imaging rather than for thermometry. Here, the temperature-dependent electron emission for four different semi-infinite materials (beryllium (Be), magnesium (Mg), copper (Cu) and gold (Au)) was investigated through a simulation approach. Various electron yields (secondary electron (SE), backscattering electron (BSE) and total electron (TE)) were recorded with different temperatures of samples at various primary electron (PE) energies. It was found that the temperature-dependent electron yield curve varies with the atomic number and the PE energy. Possible mechanisms were systematically analyzed based on the theory of electron-solid interaction. In addition, this work also investigates the temperature effect on the system of one Be nanosphere (Be-NS) and one Au nanosphere (Au-NS) on a Be substrate. The temperature-dependent electron emission on this system presents obvious differences between that in these semi-infinite materials. This work poses a potential possibility of measuring the nanoscale temperature through acquiring the temperature-dependent electron yield by a standard SEM.