Abstract A scanning electron microscope (SEM) is a multifunctional instrument for the measurement of topographic relief on the surface of bulk specimen images. This instrument is also available to detect the physical effects induced by an electron beam into subsurface layers. Space distribution of the physical properties of measured effects in the relative microrelief is a very important problem in the SEM. We describe a method of displaying specimen information in the SEM using the color cathodoluminescence (CCL‐SEM) technique nondistorted by relief influence and CCL‐SEM images with composite (color and black / white ) contrast using CCL+BSEmode.