Methods and apparatus determine offcut angle of a crystalline sample using electron channeling patterns (ECPs), wherein backscattered electron intensity exhibits angular variation dependent on crystal orientation. A zone axis normal to a given crystal plane follows a circle as the sample is azimuthally rotated. On an ECP image presented with tilt angles as axes, the radius of the circle is the offcut angle of the sample. Large offcut angles are determined by a tilt technique that brings the zone axis into the ECP field of view. ECPs are produced with a scanning electron beam and a monolithic backscattered electron detector; or alternatively with a stationary electron beam and a pixelated electron backscatter diffraction detector. Applications include strain engineering, process monitoring, detecting spatial variations, and incoming wafer inspection. Methods are 40× faster than X-ray diffraction. 0.01-0.1° accuracy enables semiconductor applications.

The invention relates to a method for processing images obtained by a diffraction detector, of a crystalline or polycrystalline material, in which a first image of the material is acquired in a state of reference as well as a second image of the material in a deformed state. The invention is characterised in that, in a calculator, during a first step (E6, E12), a current elastic deformation gradient tensor F.sup.e is given a value determined by calculation, during a second step (E7), the current displacement field induced by the tensor F.sup.e is calculated, during a third step (E8), third digital values of a deformed image {hacek over (g)}(x)=g(x+u(x)) corrected by the current displacement field are calculated, and during an iterative algorithm, iterations of the second and third steps (E12, E7, E8) are carried out on modified values of the tensor r F.sup.e until a convergence criterion is met in relation to the correction to the current value of F.sup.e.

Provided is a method of diagnosing the degradation of a lithium secondary battery in a non-destructive manner without disassembling the battery, which includes: obtaining, from X-ray diffraction (XRD) data obtained during first charging of the lithium secondary battery, a first graph showing the change of the c-axis d-spacing value of the layered positive electrode active material according to the number of moles of lithium ions deintercalated from the layered positive electrode active material during the charging; obtaining, from XRD data obtained during second charging of the lithium secondary battery, a second graph showing the change of the c-axis d-spacing value of the layered positive electrode active material according to the number of moles of lithium ions deintercalated from the layered positive electrode active material during the charging; and classifying a cause of degradation of the secondary battery by comparing the first graph and the second graph.

A method and a device for determining the material properties of a polycrystalline, in particular metallic, product during production or quality control of the polycrystalline, in particular metallic, product by means of X-ray diffraction using at least one X-ray source and at least one X-ray detector. In this case, an X-ray generated by the X-ray source is directed onto a surface of the polycrystalline product and the resulting diffraction image of the X-ray is recorded by the X-ray detector. After exiting the X-ray source, the X-ray is passed through an X-ray mirror, wherein the X-ray is both monochromatized and focused, by the X-ray mirror, in the direction of the polycrystalline product and/or the X-ray detector, and then reaches a surface of the metallic product.

The invention relates to method and system configured for material analysis and mineralogy. At least one image based on first emission from a sample is provided. First spectra of the sample based on second emissions from the second scan locations of the image are provided. A confidence score is calculated for every first spectrum, and second scan location(s) with confidence score(s) below a threshold value are selected. Second emissions from the selected second scan location(s) are acquired to provide new image and determine new second scan locations within the respective new image.

Methods and apparatus determine offcut angle of a crystalline sample using electron channeling patterns (ECPs), wherein backscattered electron intensity exhibits angular variation dependent on crystal orientation. A zone axis normal to a given crystal plane follows a circle as the sample is azimuthally rotated. On an ECP image presented with tilt angles as axes, the radius of the circle is the offcut angle of the sample. Large offcut angles are determined by a tilt technique that brings the zone axis into the ECP field of view. ECPs are produced with a scanning electron beam and a monolithic backscattered electron detector; or alternatively with a stationary electron beam and a pixelated electron backscatter diffraction detector. Applications include strain engineering, process monitoring, detecting spatial variations, and incoming wafer inspection. Methods are 40× faster than X-ray diffraction. 0.01-0.1° accuracy enables semiconductor applications.

The system for in-situ real-time measurements of microstructure properties of 3D-printing objects during 3-D printing processes. An intensive parallel X-ray beam (with an adjustable beam size) impinges on a printing object and is diffracted on a crystal lattice of the printing material. The diffracted radiation impinges on a reflector formed with an array of reflector crystals mounted on an arcuated substrate. The diffracted beams reflected from the reflector crystals correspond to the diffraction intensity peaks produced by interaction of the crystal lattice of the printing material with the impinging X-ray beam. The intensities of the diffraction peaks are observed by detectors which produce corresponding output signals, which are processed to provide critical information on the crystal phase composition, which is closely related to the defects and performance of the printing objects. The subject in-situ technology provides an effective and efficient way to monitor, in real-time, the quality of 3D-printing parts during the 3-D printing process, with a significant potential for effective process control based on the reliable microstructure feedback.

A crystalline phase contained in a sample is identified, from X-ray diffraction data of the sample which contain data of a plurality of ring-shaped diffraction patterns, using a database in which are registered data related to peak positions and peak intensity ratios of X-ray diffraction patterns for a plurality of crystalline phases. Peak positions and peak intensities for a plurality of the diffraction patterns are detected from the X-ray diffraction data (step 102), and the circumferential angle versus intensity data of the diffraction patterns is created (step 103). The diffraction patterns are grouped into a plurality of clusters on the basis of the circumferential angle versus intensity data (step 105). Crystalline phase candidates contained in the sample are searched from the database on the basis of sets of ratios of peak positions and peak intensities of the diffraction patterns grouped into the same cluster (step 106).

A device for determining the microstructure of a metal product during metallurgical production of the metal product, the device having at least one X-ray source, at least one X-ray detector and at least one accommodating chamber, inside which the X-ray source and/or the X-ray detector is/are arranged and which has at least one window which is transparent to X-ray radiation. To allow reliable determination of the microstructure of a metal product during the metallurgical production thereof, the device includes at least one cooling installation for actively cooling the accommodating chamber.

An X-ray diffraction method measures crystallite size distribution in a polycrystalline sample using an X-ray diffractometer with a two-dimensional detector. The diffraction pattern collected contains several spotty diffraction rings. The spottiness of the diffraction rings is related to the size, size distribution and orientation distribution of the crystallites as well as the diffractometer condition. The invention allows obtaining of the diffraction intensities of all measured crystallites at perfect Bragg condition so that the crystallite size distribution can be measured based on the 2D diffraction patterns.