LAUSR

Electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) in the scanning electron microscope (SEM) has evolved to be an indispensable technique in materials research for phase identification, crystal orientation determination, orientation gradients, and lattice strain mapping. While tremendous gains in the analysis and indexing of EBSD patterns have occurred, additional promise in advancing new capabilities for EBSD lies in profiting from the collection of EBSD patterns using high performance detectors. Advanced applications of EBSD, such as 3D serial sectioning and in situ testing (e.g. mechanical loading, thermal excursions), demand high speed pattern acquisition while preserving the pattern quality for indexing. In parallel, the ability to discriminate the energy distribution of the exit electrons from the specimen and the energy distribution on the detector is desirable for understanding the physics of electron diffraction, improving pattern quality to extract meaningful features, and even the potential application of EBSD as a spectroscopy tool.