ABSTRACT
Texture is important in many thin film applications such as hard coatings, magnetic recording and semiconductor devices. The texture depends on the growth conditions and composition and develops as the film grows. A method of investigating such development on a nanometre scale is described. It uses cross-sectional specimens in the transmission electron microscope. The ultimate spatial resolution is the diffraction limit imposed by the angular resolution required to resolve the diffraction rings. This is determined by the particular system under investigation but is typically a few nanometres.
