How to optimize the experimental design of quantitative atomic resolution TEM experiments?

A quantitative measure is proposed to evaluate and optimize the design of quantitative atomic resolution TEM experiments. It aims at precise measurement of unknown structure parameters. Specifically, the proposed measure quantifies the statistical precision with which positions of atom columns can be estimated. The optimal design is then given by the combination of microscope settings for which this precision is highest. The proposed measure is also used to find out if new instrumental developments improve the precision as compared to existing methods.