Backscatterdiffraktio

Backscatterdiffraktio refers to diffraction techniques that use backscattered radiation to extract information about a crystalline material’s structure. In practice the term is not widely standardized, but it aligns with well-established methods such as electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and related backscattered-beam diffraction approaches used in materials science.

Principle: A beam of electrons or X-rays strikes a crystalline sample and a portion of the radiation is scattered back toward the source. When the scattering occurs within a crystal lattice, diffracted waves form patterns that encode the arrangement of lattice planes, crystal orientation, and phase. The resulting backscattered diffraction patterns, including Kikuchi-type bands in EBSD, are analyzed to reveal orientation, grain boundaries, textures, and, in some cases, strain information.

Techniques and applications: The most developed form is EBSD within a scanning electron microscope, where a tilted, polished specimen yields high-resolution orientation maps of grains, boundaries, and phases. X-ray backscatter diffraction is another variant used for bulk samples or specific materials. These methods find wide use in metallurgy, geology, and materials engineering to characterize microstructure, texture, phase distribution, and crystallographic relationships.

Equipment and workflow: Preparation often involves meticulous polishing to expose grain boundaries. The instrumentation typically includes a particle source (electrons or X-rays), a backscattered-diffracted signal detector, and software to index patterns against crystallographic databases. Outputs are presented as orientation maps, phase maps, and misorientation analyses, supporting materials research, quality control, and failure analysis.