In order to create field emission, first make a metallic sample in the form of a sharp tip. Apply an electric field to the tip. The electric field can be made to be very high indeed causing electrons in the tip to tunnel out of the material. The electrons can be accelerated on to a phosphor screen to give information on the atoms at the very tip end. The technique is related to FIM.

Field emission is frequently used nowadays as a source of electrons in SEM and SAM due to the very small area over which the electrons are emitted. This leads to very small spot sizes when the electrons are focussed onto the sample.