Part 4/9:
The principles of SEM were elaborated upon, explaining the operation of secondary and backscattered electrons which help attain elemental analysis. The varying absorption characteristics of different materials profoundly influenced the resultant imaging results, underscoring the importance of understanding how surface contaminants interfere with data interpretation.
Grignia meticulously detailed analyses revealing characteristically low levels of contamination across both the raw and treated nickel meshes. Despite the inherent challenges of SEM data processing, the untreated mesh consistently showed a composition close to pure nickel, establishing the reliability of the control sample.