R. F. Egerton

My general aim in writing is to try to identify the basic principles involved and describe them as clearly as possible, but without misleading oversimplification. Professor Peter Hawkes seems to have appreciated this in his 2017 review, published in Microscopy and Microanalysis: Newcomers to the electron microscope are very lucky that R.F. Egerton has made such a successful effort to satisfy their needs. He tells us that the first edition of his Physical Principles of Electron Microscopy sold well and has been translated into Russian; the new edition will surely be seized on just as eagerly. There are several massive books on electron microscopy but beginners need a shortish book to get them started. With seven chapters fitted into less than 200 pages, each topic can be accorded only a few pages but each of these pages is packed with clear explanations. First we are introduced to the various microscopes: TEM, SEM, STEM, AEM, LEEM and PEEM, field emission and atom-probe microscopes, not forgetting the x-ray microscope and the light microscope. Electron Optics (Chapter 2) includes a short section on aberration correction and monochromators, so that if the reader goes on to read more about these, he will be familiar with the vocabulary and objectives. Chapter 3 on the transmission electron microscope is full of practical information about stigmators and shift and tilt controls as well as the main elements of the TEM and STEM. This is followed by an account of TEM Specimens and Images, which covers scattering and contrast formation with a few words on specimen preparation. Two chapters then examine the SEM. Environmental SEM and e-beam lithography are not forgotten and each of the facets of analytical electron microscopy ¬ x-rays, Auger electrons and EELS ¬ receives a few pages. Each chapter has a sensibly short list of Further Reading; newcomers do not want a list of 20 books, they just want a few key titles or well-written reviews.