ABSTRACT
Simulations of the electrostatic potential in a thin sample that contains a single Si p-n junction have been carried out in order to examine the effect of different boundary conditions at the sample surface on the potential within the sample. The calculations are compared with experimental electron holography results. The simulations are compared with experimental electron holography results obtained from a sample prepared using focused ion beam milling. Simulations of the electrostatic potential across a p-n junction were obtained by solving Poisson's equation using a relaxation approach. The electrostatic potential in a transmission electron microscope (TEM) sample of doped semiconducting material can be mapped using off-axis electron holography. Experimental observations also show that the surface of an unbiased TEM sample that contains a doped semiconductor is always an equipotential, as revealed by the absence of electrostatic fringing fields outside the surface.
