Sample Preparation Recipes from Various Materials

Different samples benefit from different preparation methods, there is no single solution which works on all samples. The table below gives some general guidelines for different sample types and the resources below contain information about specific samples and examples of preparation methods.

Mechanical Polishing

Technique

Standard Metallographic Polishing

Colloidal Silica

Vibromet

Electropolishing (post mechanical polish)

Ion Milling (Ideally post mechanical polish)*

Metals

Single phase

Optional

Multi phase

Optional

No, may cause preferential etching

Soft metals e.g. Cu, Al

Very useful

Very useful

Steels

Optional

Ceramics

Single phase

Very useful

Not required

Multi phase

Very useful

Not required

Geological

Multi phase

Very useful

Not required

* Ion milling should ideally be post mechanical polishing. It can be performed on an unprepared sample however the milling time will be significantly longer.

 

Learning Resources

Application Note - Applying nanomanipulation to the EBSD analysis of a gold wire

This application note describes a method of combining Oxford Instrument’s OmniProbe tools and AZtec EBSD system for the manipulation and analysis of a 5μm diameter gold microelectronic wire sample.

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Application Note - Evolution of EBSD Patterns during Sample Preparation

This application note describes how EBSD patterns evolve during various mechanical polishing stages of duplex steel and sintered alumina as well as electrolytical polishing of the duplex steel sample. 

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Technical Bulletin - Sample preparation for EBSD Analysis

This technical bulletin describes some simple recipes outlining the techniques sample preparation for EBSD Analysis.

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Poster - Advanced EBSD sample preparation using Broad Beam Argon Ion Milling

This poster shows how Broad Beam Ion Milling has been used to produce excellent samples from zirconium and magnesium alloys and galvanized zinc coatings, usually difficult to prepare by mechanical routes only.

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Poster - Evolution of EBSD Patterns during Sample Preparation

This study is an attempt to illustrate how EBSD patterns evolve through the various metallographic preparation steps using duplex steel and alumina samples as examples.

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Poster - Microstructural Characterisation of an Automotive Spark Plug using EBSD

This study illustrates the methodology for
mechanically polishing an automotive spark plug, utilising both bright field and differential interference contrast optical microscopy to assess the surface condition, prior to SEM/EBSD characterisation.

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