Multiplicity of dislocation pathways in a refractory multiprincipal element alloy.

Refractory multiprincipal element alloys (MPEAs) are promising materials to meet the demands of aggressive structural applications, yet require fundamentally different avenues for accommodating plastic deformation in the body-centered cubic (bcc) variants of these alloys. We show a desirable combination of homogeneous plastic deformability and strength in the bcc MPEA MoNbTi, enabled by the rugged atomic environment through which dislocations must navigate. Our observations of dislocation motion and atomistic calculations unveil the unexpected dominance of nonscrew character dislocations and numerous slip planes for dislocation glide. This behavior lends credence to theories that explain the exceptional high temperature strength of similar alloys. Our results advance a defect-aware perspective to alloy design strategies for materials capable of performance across the temperature spectrum.

Advanced detector signal acquisition and electron beam scanning for high resolution SEM imaging.

The advancement of materials science at the mesoscale requires improvements in both sampling volumes/areas and spatial resolution in order to make statistically significant measurements of microstructures that influence higher-order material properties, such as fatigue and fracture. Therefore, SEM-based techniques have become desirable due to improvements in imaging resolution, large sample handling capability, and flexibility for in-situ instrumentation. By using fast sampling of SEM electron detector signals, intrinsic beam scanning defects have been identified that are related to the response time of the SEM electron beam deflectors and electron detectors. Mitigation of these beam scanning defects using detector sampling approaches and an adaptive model for settling time is shown to produce higher resolution SEM images, at faster image acquisition times, with a means to quantify the different response functions for various beam deflectors and detectors including those for electrons and ions.

Transmission scanning electron microscopy: Defect observations and image simulations.

The new capabilities of a FEG scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped with a scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) detector for defect characterization have been studied in parallel with transmission electron microscopy (TEM) imaging. Stacking faults and dislocations have been characterized in strontium titanate, a polycrystalline nickel-base superalloy and a single crystal cobalt-base material. Imaging modes that are similar to conventional TEM (CTEM) bright field (BF) and dark field (DF) and STEM are explored, and some of the differences due to the different accelerating voltages highlighted. Defect images have been simulated for the transmission scanning electron microscopy (TSEM) configuration using a scattering matrix formulation, and diffraction contrast in the SEM is discussed in comparison to TEM. Interference effects associated with conventional TEM, such as thickness fringes and bending contours are significantly reduced in TSEM by using a convergent probe, similar to a STEM imaging modality, enabling individual defects to be imaged clearly even in high dislocation density regions. Beyond this, TSEM provides significant advantages for high throughput and dynamic in-situ characterization.