Texture tomography (TexTOM) is a cutting-edge 3D crystallographic texture-analysis tool for polycrystalline materials, now available at beamlines ID13 and ID15A, with future expansions planned for additional beamlines. TexTOM offers rapid, quantitative texture analysis with enhanced spatial resolution, making it ideal for complex materials like biominerals, deformed metals, and technical alloys. This technique enables in-situ and operando studies, expanding the possibilities for real-time texture investigations.
Crystallographic texture plays a crucial role in determining the mechanical, electronic, magnetic, and optical properties of polycrystalline materials. Existing techniques, such as 3D X-ray diffraction (3DXRD) [1] and dark-field X-ray microscopy [2], are effective for analyzing well-aligned, narrow structures in technical materials. However, they are limited in their ability to provide comprehensive quantitative texture information in 3D analysis for broader more complex textures, which are typically found in biomaterials, biominerals, or deformed technical materials.
While wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) tensor tomography [3] (derived from small-angle X-ray scattering tensor tomography [4,5,6]) has facilitated more detailed 3D orientation analysis, it lacks a fully quantitative approach due to its reliance on a reciprocal space model of single Bragg reflections. In contrast, typical diffraction patterns contain multiple crystalline reflections, whose intensity and distribution offer valuable additional information.
TexTOM is a new tool developed by Tilman Grünewald’s group at the Institut Fresnel, Marseille, in collaboration with beamlines ID13 and ID15A, designed to fill the gap in 3D crystallographic texture analysis. The technique utilizes a hyperspherical harmonics [7] approach to model local orientation distribution functions (ODF), enabling the description of crystallographic texture in 3D. By incorporating prior knowledge of crystal symmetry, TexTOM reduces the data required compared to WAXS tensor tomography, thereby accelerating the measurement process and minimizing sample exposure.
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Image: Fig. 1: Texture tomography (TexTOM). a) Data collection involves raster-scanning a sample through a focused X-ray beam at multiple rotation and tilt angles, capturing a 2D diffraction pattern at each scan point. b) Selected diffractlets form the basis for structural reconstruction. c) Successful reconstruction of a silica biomorph, where a full orientation distribution is determined for each voxel, allowing detailed analysis.