In situ high-resolution transmission electron microscopy of dislocation formation and dynamics during the crystallization of amorphous SrTiO3

In situ high-resolution TEM imaging of an ion-milled SrTiO3 sample during annealing at 925 and 940 °C is reported. Regions that were amorphized during the ion-milling at room temperature are observed to crystallize, forming low-angle grain boundaries. At the grain boundaries, perfect a〈0 0 1〉 dislocations and two climb-dissociated a/2〈0 1 1〉 dislocations were observed. The experimental observations also include dynamic dislocation phenomena, such as glide, climb, and annihilation. Interestingly, the separation of the two a/2〈0 1 1〉 partial dislocations in the low-angle grain boundaries is not constant, but temporarily fluctuates around a mean value of 2 nm.