Wildfire

In situ TEM Heating Platform

In situ Heating; Real-time imaging of thermal dynamics inside TEM

Key Features
- Observe dynamic structural changes in real-time
- Extremely fast response times heating rate up to 200°C/ms ensures you don’t miss a thing
- Unrivalled stability down to 6pm/sec at 800°C
- Sample cleanliness In situ heating reduces the chance of sample contamination resulting in improved image quality
- Robust localised closed loop heating system with feedback allows maximum control and fast responsiveness
- Compatible with EDX monitoring chemical alterations during heat treatment
- The best chip design in the market ensures the highest levels of control, homogeneous temperature and maximum temperature reliability
- Smart chip design minimises the bulging effect resulting in a seamless TEM opertion during heating cycle
- Double tilt holder with highest tilt angle in the market

High-impact publications

Experiment: Thermal degradation of perovskite solar cell

Obtaining the ‘game changing’ experimental results is the goal of any researcher – academic or industry. The team at Cambridge University focusing on energy related materials used the Wildfire system to study perovskite solar cells and their degradation processes during heating. These solar cells have become increasingly popular, however, the stability and lifetime of such devices at elevated temperatures are of concern. In situ TEM was used to understand the changes in morphology and chemical composition, leading to an improved understanding of the degradation evolution and Nature Energy publication.
Heat-induced degradation of perovskite solar cells. G. Divitini, et al. University of Cambridge Nature Energy 2016. DOI: 10.1038/nenergy.2015.12

Real time dynamics

Behavior at the macroscale is strongly linked to atomic arrangement and its transformation. In this example Ru nanoparticles supported on silica are heated to 1300 °C using a DENSsolutions Wildfire system. At that temperatures, the SiO₂ sphere evaporates and the Ru nanoparticles become very mobile. The emphasized nanoparticle changes from round to square. This shape change can be studied in detail, due to technology behind DENSsolutions heating systems which ensures high sample stability, sub-Å resolution and therefore enables deeper understanding of the processes involved,

Courtesy of Gatan. Acquired with Wildfire D6 (now H+ DT) and Gatan OneView IS camera on a Thermo Fisher Scientific (FEI) Tecnai TF20

High temperature EDS

Chemical analysis while heating is extremely important to understand the dynamics of temperature-induced transformations High quality EDS analysis at elevated temperatures is challenging due to the intense generation of infrared radiation during heating which disturbs the X-Ray spectral acquisition. DENSsolutions provides the technology and the experimental evidence that in situ EDS at elevated temperatures is reliable and robust technique across a large temperature range. For the first time it was shown that EDS analysis is possible even at 1000 °C.

Acquired on a Wildfire S3. Maps courtesy of Bruker