Latin Word of the Week (February 28, 2009): AD To, Toward. The prefix AD, which in Latin means to or toward, occurs in literally hundreds of common English words. In many of those words it retains the spelling AD, in many others the D assimilates to the first letter of the root word. For example, the word assimilate which I just used.
The most probable mechanism, responsible for fibril length and diameter increase, is the fusion of fibrils; fusion may occur at the tapered ends through lateral association, giving rise to longer fibrils and this is considered the former fusion to take place.
FIB is a relatively new technique to prepare thin samples for TEM examination from larger specimens. Because FIB can be used to micro-machine samples very precisely, it is possible to mill very thin membranes from a specific area of interest in a sample, such as a semiconductor or metal. TEM is composed of several components, which include a vacuum system in which the electrons travel, an electron emission source for generation of the electron stream, a series of electromagnetic lenses, as well as electrostatic plates. The latter two allow the operator to guide and manipulate the beam as required.