Electron beam-induced current

EBIC is similar to cathodoluminescence in that it depends on the creation of electron–hole pairs in the semiconductor sample by the microscope's electron beam.

When a semiconductor device is imaged in cross-section, the depletion region will show bright EBIC contrast.

The shape of the contrast can be treated mathematically to determine the minority carrier properties of the semiconductor, such as diffusion length and surface recombination velocity.

SEEBIC was first demonstrated in 2018, likely due to its much smaller signal compared to the standard EBIC mode (electron-hole pair separation).

The smaller interaction volume of secondary electron generation compared to electron-hole pair production makes SEEBIC accessible at much higher spatial resolution [3].

Use of an external scan control generator on the SEM and a dedicated data acquisition system allow for sub-picoamp measurements and can give quantitative results.