A nanocrystalline Hilbert phase-plate for phase-contrast transmission electron microscopy

•Consideration of crystalline metal-film-based phase-plates (PP).•Simulation of the effect of monocrystalline and textured nanocrystalline PPs.•Experimental application of a textured nanocrystalline Au-film-based Hilbert PP.•Consistent PP properties obtained in simulation and experiment.

Thin-film-based phase-plates are applied to enhance the contrast of weak-phase objects in transmission electron microscopy. In this work, metal-film-based phase-plates are considered to reduce contamination and electrostatic charging, which up to now limit the application of phase-plates fabricated from amorphous C-films. Their crystalline structure requires a model for the simulation of the effect of crystallinity on the phase-plate properties and the image formation process. The model established in this work is verified by experimental results obtained by the application of a textured nanocrystalline Au-film-based Hilbert phase-plate. Based on the model, it is shown that monocrystalline and textured nanocrystalline phase-plate microstructures of appropriate thickness and crystalline orientation can be a promising approach for phase-contrast transmission electron microscopy.