This article reviews the analytical techniques used for phase identification in components, including x-ray diffraction, metallography/microscopy, electron backscatter diffraction, trasmission electron microscopy,and atom probe tomography. The article addresses the advantages and disadvantages of each technique compared to the other approaches.

Because electron backscatter diffraction is a surface-sensitive technique, preparing the sample surface so that it is smooth and free of defects is crucial to successful analysis. Supplementing hand polishing with ion milling provides a superior surface finish free of operator or technique-related errors, thus enabling a high-confidence EBSD examination of the microstructure of even the most complex materials.

This article series explores the indispensable role of characterization in the development of cold spray coatings. Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) is a characterization technique that enables determination of crystal orientations, texture, boundary misorientations and deformation behavior, and bonding mechanism in cold spray coatings.

Because the nature of grain size distribution can influence mechanical properties and service behavior, it is important to accurately characterize this parameter. This article demonstrates how to evaluate grain size distribution, which can be done using either grain area or intercept-length measurements.

An in-situ annealing technique combined with electron backscatter diffraction was used to characterize the microstructural evolution of ZE20 magnesium alloy as a function of temperature. This work sets the stage for future experiments to understand and control the recrystallization behavior of commercial alloys.

High-speed, high-fidelity techniques used to analyze texture and dislocation content enable greater understanding of the influence of texture on deformation of titanium alloys than previously possible. This article describes a study in which specimens were examined using graphical slip band analysis to understand the influence of microstructure, alloy content, and loading orientation on the surface deformation response of titanium.

By changing a setup and using electron transparent samples, hundreds of laboratories worldwide have access to a characterization technique, transmission Kikuchi diffraction, that measures grain sizes and orientations in nanocrystalline materials.

This article discusses the development and use of a nondestructive evaluation (NDE) method that allows researchers to compare surface crystallographic orientations before and after mechanical testing to determine the impact of surface orientation on material response. Two gage samples were tested, one rectangular (Ti-Al), the other round (IN100). The samples were placed in a SEM equipped with an EBSD detector and a motorized fixture that rotates the test piece as EBSD and imaging data are collected. Inverse pole figure maps of both gage samples are presented.

A microscale fatigue testing technique for characterizing mechanical response and relating it to microstructure promises to improve fatigue life prediction for turbine engine components.