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SEM EBSD (Scanning Electron Microscopy with Electron Backscatter Diffraction) is a microstructural analysis technique used to characterize the crystal orientation, phase distribution, and grain boundaries of materials. It works by detecting diffraction patterns generated by backscattered electrons to reveal detailed crystallographic information.
Electron Backscatter Diffraction (EBSD), when coupled with Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), is a powerful technique for characterizing the crystallographic structure of materials at the microscale. EBSD enables the determination of grain orientation, phase identification, and the analysis of microstructural features such as grain boundaries, twin boundaries, and texture. During analysis, a stationary electron beam interacts with a tilted crystalline sample, producing backscattered electrons that generate distinct diffraction patterns (Kikuchi patterns). These patterns are captured by a sensitive detector and analyzed to map crystallographic information with high spatial resolution. SEM-EBSD is widely used in materials science, metallurgy, geology, and semiconductor research for understanding structure–property relationships in polycrystalline materials.
The principle of EBSD in SEM is based on the diffraction of backscattered electrons from a crystalline sample. When a focused electron beam in the SEM strikes a tilted crystalline surface (typically at 70° to the horizontal), some of the incident electrons are scattered back out of the sample. A small fraction of these electrons undergo coherent elastic scattering within the crystal lattice, forming a diffraction pattern known as a Kikuchi pattern. This pattern is collected by a phosphor screen and recorded by a CCD or CMOS camera. By analyzing the geometry and intensity of the Kikuchi bands, the orientation of the crystal lattice at the beam interaction point can be determined. By scanning the beam across the sample surface, a map of crystallographic orientations and phases can be created, providing detailed insight into the material's microstructure.
Samples must have a flat, clean, and highly polished surface. For best results, final polishing with colloidal silica or ion milling is recommended. Conductive coating may be necessary for non-conductive materials.
EBSD can typically resolve grain sizes down to ~20–50 nm using advanced field emission SEMs, though resolution depends on material type, detector quality, and surface preparation.
Yes, EBSD can identify different crystalline phases based on their unique diffraction patterns, provided they have known structures in the EBSD database.
EBSD is a non-destructive technique in general, but prolonged exposure to the electron beam may cause local heating or slight damage, especially in sensitive or beam-unstable materials.
Caption: a) ARGUS FSE/BSE image after preparation using EM TXP and EM TIC 3X. EBSD patterns of the b) diamond, c) Al, and d) graphite phase. e) SEM image (taken with secondary electrons) showing an overview of the prepared surface which has a total size of 3 mm. f) Pattern quality map of the EBSD/EDS analysis. g) EBSD phase map showing the high indexing rate, even on the graphite flakes, where graphite is displayed in blue, diamond in red, and Al in green. h) Corresponding IPF-X / EBSD orientation map along the X axis.
