Diffraction techniques in engineering applications

Diffraction techniques applied to crystalline materials provide quantitative information about the crystallographic structure and mechanical condition of the material. Those two characteristics influence the chemical, physical, and mechanical properties of a component. A concerted application of x-ray and neutron diffraction allows one to comprehensively study the bulk and subsurface variations of such material characteristics as crystallographic texture, residual stress, and cold work. The Residual Stress User Center at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory offers academic and industrial researchers both neutron and x-ray diffraction capabilities. Recent examples of the application of work related to thin film, metal, ceramic and composite material technologies are presented.