Single-Scan Three-Dimensional Atomic Imaging via Electron Ptychographic Interferometry

Single-Scan Three-Dimensional Atomic Imaging via Electron Ptychographic Interferometry | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Single-Scan Three-Dimensional Atomic Imaging via Electron Ptychographic Interferometry Wu Zhou, Ang Li, Shuoyuan Huang, Yinhang Ma, Tong Liu, Zhaoqing Wang, and 3 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9384287/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Resolving atomic positions in all three dimensions with high precision is central to understanding many emergent properties of quantum materials, but has remained fundamentally challenging. Existing three-dimensional (3D) imaging methods in electron microscopy are largely tomography-based, relying on geometrical parallax from tilt-series projections and high electron doses, which makes them unfriendly for beam-sensitive and structurally flexible systems such as 2D materials. Here, we introduce electron ptychographic interferometry (EPI), a single-scan 3D atomic imaging method that exploits intrinsic wave interference induced by individual atoms during electron scattering. By decoding this atom-induced interference in the amplitude of the electron exit wave into a quantitative depth-sensitive contrast, EPI retrieves full 3D atomic coordinates with picometer axial precision and deep sub-angstrom lateral resolution, without specimen tilting or model assumptions. We validate the picometer accuracy of EPI by quantifying the 2.98 Å S-S interlayer distance in monolayer MoS2, and apply it to experimentally resolve, for the first time, a ~5 pm out-of-plane structural reconstruction in AA-stacked regions of magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene. EPI thus establishes a physically distinct and experimentally accessible route to single-scan 3D atomic imaging, opening new opportunities to uncover atomic-scale origins of quantum phenomena. Physical sciences/Physics/Techniques and instrumentation/Microscopy/Transmission electron microscopy Physical sciences/Physics/Condensed-matter physics/Structure of solids and liquids Physical sciences/Materials science/Nanoscale materials/Two-dimensional materials Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files EPISupplementaryInformation.docx Supplementary Information Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9384287","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":622011104,"identity":"9934ae35-e829-4dc4-890b-91f37485bdfe","order_by":0,"name":"Wu 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