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Conventional TEM specimen preparation techniques are not site-specific. SEM becomes a very powerful tool when equipped with a focused ion beam (FIB) column for both characterisation and micro-milling (machining) of material.  A Dual beam FEI Nova 200 Field Emission Gun Scanning Electron Microscope (FEGSEM) with a FIB column has been used for preparing FIB Lamellas of regions containing graphite particles for subsequent study by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The FIB beam is used for micro-milling of the specimen whilst the SEM beam is used for watching progress of the machining operation.

FIB-SEM is an excellent tool for preparing FIB Lamellas especially for subsequent TEM characterisation of precipitate phases in metallic alloys. The unique advantage of this technique is that it is possible to locate and identify a precipitate by SEM imaging and EDX analysis, and then produce a FIB/TEM Lamella containing it for TEM study. EDX analysis, elemental maps, HRTEM lattice images and diffraction patterns are taken from the FIB Lamellas containing graphite particles