EBSD sample preparation on Al/Mg bulk material using the Ilion II system 

Instrument used

Ilion^® II system, EDAX^® Velocity™ and Clarity™ EBSD analysis systems

Background

Sample preparation has always been a prerequisite for successful electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) testing. Generally, metal samples can be prepared more conventionally, for example, by mechanical grinding and polishing (mechanical polishing), then followed by vibratory polishing. However, it can be difficult to achieve the desired result with this approach for magnesium and aluminum, whose chemical properties make these materials reactive. You can prepare these metals by electropolishing after an initial grinding and mechanical polishing, but it requires selecting the appropriate chemical solution, and the operation is more complicated. In this study, the Ilion II system was used for final sample preparation. With this tool, the process was relatively simple, and EBSD results were easily acquired.