An apparatus and method for inspecting a surface of a sample, particularly but not limited to a semiconductor device, using an electron beam is presented. The technique is called Secondary Electron Emission Microscopy (SEEM), and has significant advantages over both Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Low Energy Electron Microscopy (LEEM) techniques. In particular, the SEEM technique utilizes a beam of relatively high-energy primary electrons having a beam width appropriate for parallel, multi-pixel imaging. The electron energy is near a charge-stable condition to achieve faster imaging than was previously attainable with SEM, and charge neutrality unattainable with LEEM. The emitted electrons may be detected using a time delay integration detector.