- #1
Strangeline
- 25
- 0
I know an electron microscope can collect x-rays emitted by electron holes, backscattered electrons as well as secondary electrons. I get that an electron's wavelength is much smaller than a photons, thus you get finer image resolution, but how exactly does a shorter wavelength mean a finer resolution? I know the photon's longer wavelength causes it to "overlook" finer details, but how exactly does a wave "overlook" something?
How does a wavelength interact with a physical surface to cause this? I could see this making more sense if i treat a wave as a particle oscillating in space and, when fired down vertically, hits a steep surface horizontally and reflects off into a detector... but I don't think that's what really happens. And if you treat an electron as a wave, how do you end up with backscattered electrons?
I guess what I am really saying is I don't know how to bridge the gap between the electron's wave-like nature and its physical counterpart.
How does a wavelength interact with a physical surface to cause this? I could see this making more sense if i treat a wave as a particle oscillating in space and, when fired down vertically, hits a steep surface horizontally and reflects off into a detector... but I don't think that's what really happens. And if you treat an electron as a wave, how do you end up with backscattered electrons?
I guess what I am really saying is I don't know how to bridge the gap between the electron's wave-like nature and its physical counterpart.