Case studies on the application of high-resolution electron channelling contrast imaging – investigation of defects and defect arrangements in metallic materials

In 1967, Coates discovered the electron channelling contrast of backscattered electrons (BSEs) in scanning electron microscopy, and by this the possibility to investigate arrangements of lattice defects in deformed microstructures of materials. Since that time, a straightforward development of the scanning electron microscopes as well as of the electron channelling contrast technique took place. Nowadays, the performance of scanning electron microscopes is high enough that the resolution of electron channelling contrast imaging (ECCI) micrographs is comparable with conventional bright field transmission electron microscopy (TEM) micrographs. In the first part of the present paper, a historical review on the development of the ECCI technique starting from its discovery more than 45 years ago up to the combination with other advanced methods of scanning electron microscopy like electron backscatter diffraction or high-resolution selected area channelling patterning in the last few years is given. Major important investigations using this technique for the visualization of individual lattice defects like stacking faults (SFs) and dislocations or dislocation arrangements are chronologically summarized. The second part demonstrates that nowadays, ECCI micrographs taken in high-resolution scanning electron microscopes can be called high-resolution ECCI (HR-ECCI). It is shown that the resolution of individual SFs and dislocations in the HR-ECCI micrographs is comparable to that of conventional TEM (about 15 nm defect image width). Furthermore, the paper is demonstrating that HR-ECCI micrographs can be obtained for various types of materials after different mechanical loadings and different grain sizes ranging from large grain size of 500 μm (cast steel) down to less than 2 μm (γ-TiAl).