Mapping the Mesoscale Interface Structure in Polycrystalline Materials

Abstract Using the new method known as Orientation Imaging Microscopy (OIM), characterization of mesoscale aspect of the internal structure of polycrystalline materials in the two-dimensional section plane has become routine. However, in some applications which primarily focus either on the characterization of interface types or on their connectivity, OIM is rather inefficient since only the scan points that lie adjacent to the interfaces are used to determine interface character. When the OIM grid spacing is dictated by the precision with which the interfacial in-plane inclination must be determined in the section plane, the efficiency with which conventional OIM can harvest interfacial data is rather poor. In this paper a new approach and system of microscopy is described, called the Mesoscale Interface Mapping System (MIMS). MIMS overcomes the challenges associated with OIM by directing the beam to the vicinity of interfaces which have been identified by a microstructural contrast image.