Student Travel Support for Electron Backscatter Diffraction 2016 Topical Conference

University Of Alabama Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa AL

Investigators

Abstract

This award will partially support a conference focused on Electron Backscatter Diffraction (EBSD) planned for May 24-26, 2016, at the University of Alabama, under the sponsorship of the Microanalysis Society (MAS). EBSD is a core microanalytical technique that utilizes the diffraction of high-energy electrons to determine the orientations of crystals in natural and engineered materials. This approach has major applications in both material science and geology related to understanding everything from crystallization processes to microstructures that record geostructural deformation and affect material properties (such as strength, fracture toughness and thermal conductivity). The EBSD topical conference series has become the de facto meeting in North America for the development and application of this core microanalytical technique. This meeting?s importance is reflected in part by invited speakers from three continents (North America, Europe, and Australia) who are all at the absolute edge of development in new directions for this diffraction approach. This conference will provide a venue for ideas to be shared between the primary disciplines utilizing the technique: geoscience and materials science and engineering. The exchange of cutting-edge knowledge from these communities will facilitate dissemination of knowledge and further research developments throughout the community. Students will particularly benefit from these interactions while also having the opportunity to present their research via oral or poster presentations.