Quantitative phase imaging of metallic nanostructures using off-axis electron holography

In this dissertation the quantitative characterization of metallic nanostructures of different size, shape and composition by means of advanced electron microscopy techniques is presented. It is well known that transmission electron microscopy (TEM) has the ability to resolve the atomic structure of materials, but conventional TEM methods do not give all the information that would describe the physical behavior of nanomaterials. In this dissertation an advanced phase reconstruction technique that can be used to characterize electric and magnetic fields is presented, off-axis electron holography. The combination of electron holography with other electron microscopy techniques is crucial to obtain better insights on the structure-property relationship in nanomaterials. Electron holography is a leading-edge technology which utilizes the interference effect of the electron wave and can detect and quantify the electromagnetic field on the nanometer scale. The purpose of this dissertation is to remark the capabilities of the technique as a powerful tool for the characterization of novel nanostructured materials.