Large Area Cryo-Planing of Vitrified Samples Using Broad-Beam Ion Milling

摘要

On account of its excellent resolution and high throughput, cryoSEM imaging has recently seen resurgence. In this work, we report on the development of cryogenic triple ion gun milling (CryoTIGM (TM)), a broad ion beam milling technique for cryo-planing of vitrified, frozen-hydrated specimens. We find that sections prepared with CryoTIGM (TM) are smooth over exceptionally large areas (similar to 700,000 mu m(2)), and reveal ultrastructural details in similar or better quality than freeze-fractured samples.