This thoroughly revised and updated Fourth Edition of a time-honored text provides the reader with a comprehensive introduction to the field of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry (EDS) for elemental microanalysis, electron backscatter diffraction analysis (EBSD) for micro-crystallography and focused ion beams. Students and academic researchers will find the text to be an authoritative and scholarly resource, while SEM operators and a diversity of practitioners — engineers, technicians, physical and biological scientists, clinicians, and technical managers — will find that every chapter has been overhauled to meet the more practical needs of the technologist and working professional. In a break with the past, this Fourth Edition de-emphasizes the design and physical operating basis of the instrumentation, including the electron sources, lenses, detectors, etc. In the modern SEM, many of the low level instrument parameters are now controlled and optimized by the microscope’s software, and user access is restricted. Although the software control system provides efficient and reproducible microscopy and microanalysis, the user must understand the parameter space wherein choices are made to achieve effective andmeaningful microscopy, microanalysis, and micro-crystallography. Therefore, special emphasis is placed on beam energy, beam current, electron detector characteristics and controls, and ancillary techniques such as energy dispersive x-ray spectrometry (EDS) and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD).