The determination of crystal structures from electron diffraction data has a long tradition. Because electrons interact with matter far more strongly than X-rays, electron diffraction delivers measurable signal from crystals a billion times smaller than those required for single-crystal X-ray diffraction — down to individual nanocrystals. This makes it the method of choice for materials that are only available as nanocrystalline powders, as beam-sensitive organics and pharmaceuticals, or as minor phases in complex
mixtures. Our group develops both the instrumentation strategies and the data-processing tools that turn this potential into routine, ab-initio structure solution.".
Traditionally, electron diffraction records oriented diffraction patterns along defined zone axes. While powerful for symmetry analysis, this approach samples reciprocal space incompletely and suffers strongly from dynamical scattering, which complicates ab-initio structure solution. These limitations motivated the Representative results obtained with ADT/3D ED include the structure solution of strongly disordered intergrown zeolites, of a previously unknown hydrated calcium carbonate phase (calcium carbonate hemihydrate, *Science* **363**, 396–400, 2019) and of an ultra-high-strength silicide phase in a wear-resistant steel alloy (*Nature Communications* **9**, 1374, 2018).
development of tomographic acquisition strategies.
Automated Diffraction Tomography (ADT) was developed in our group in 2007 (Kolb et al.). Instead of oriented patterns, ADT acquires a sequence of **non-oriented** diffraction patterns at fixed tilt steps around an arbitrary crystal orientation and reconstructs them into the full three-dimensional reciprocal space. Because the patterns are collected away from major zone axes — and, in combination with precession electron diffraction (PED), with reduced dynamical effects — the integrated intensities are close to kinematical and well suited for ab-initio structure solution. ADT established a complete workflow covering data acquisition, 3D reconstruction, cell determination, intensity extraction, validation and structure solution. The method is today widely known as 3D electron diffraction (3D ED) and electron diffraction tomography (EDT), and underpins much of the current growth of the field.
A complete and continuously updated list of our ADT / 3D ED publications is available on the [Publications → ADT (3DED)](https://www.ak-kolb.chemistry.uni-mainz.de/adt-2/) page.
Since ADT was introduced in 2007, several related acquisition schemes for finely sampling reciprocal space have been developed across the community, including continuous-rotation and stepwise variants now generally grouped under "electron diffraction tomography (EDT)" or "3D ED". Our current work focuses on the
reproducibility and precision of these experiments — for example the systematic evaluation of TEM goniometer tracking precision in tomography (Santucci & Kolb, *Ultramicroscopy* **282**, 114308, 2026) — and on extending 3D ED to in-situ, variable-temperature and beam- or vacuum-sensitive samples.
A high-strength silicide phase in a stainless steel alloy designed for wear-resistant applicationsNature Communications 9:1374 (2018)
After ADT was born in 2007 many different approaches for a fine sampling of intensity space have been developed. They are collected and described under the general description "Electron diffraction tomography (EDT)"
Since ADT was introduced in 2007, several related acquisition schemes for finely sampling reciprocal space have been developed across the community, including continuous-rotation and stepwise variants now generally grouped under "electron diffraction tomography (EDT)" or "3D ED". Our current work focuses on the reproducibility and precision of these experiments — for example the systematic evaluation of TEM goniometer tracking precision in tomography (Santucci & Kolb, Ultramicroscopy 282, 114308, 2026) — and on extending 3D ED to in-situ, variable-temperature and beam- or vacuum-sensitive samples.