Arguably one of the most significant microscopy techniques of the past decade, electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) has provided scientists and engineers with tremendous insight into the structure of crystalline materials. What started with basic observations of electron diffraction in the middle of the 20th century has grown into a mature technology that bridges the gap between the macro and micro length scales. EBSD has found a home in both the materials science and geological communities characterizing crystallographic texture and preferred orientations, residual strain, grain boundary character and networks, and identifying constituent phases. Advancements in computational power, camera technology, indexing algorithms, sample preparation, and dynamical simulations have made this possible.
Introduction to a Special Issue on Electron Backscatter Diffraction