Electron Backscatter Diffraction (EBSD) - BYU Electron Microscopy Facility Skip to main content
Electron Microscopy Facility
Subsidiary of the Research and Graduate Studies Office of the AVP

Electron Backscatter Diffraction (EBSD)

By Paul Minson,
May 05, 2023 02:18 PM

Procedure for using the EBSD system on the Apreo

Apreo EBSD Operation

Getting Started

Your sample should be securely attached and grounded to a specimen stub that is 1/2” or larger having a 1/8”-diameter post.

Loading the Sample

  1. Vent the chamber by pressing the “Vent” button on the Beam Control panel’s Vacuum pane.
  2. Move the stage to a low Z position, rotate stage so beveled edge is on right side of chamber (facing the instrument).
  • Place sample in hole near beveled edge.
  1. Gently close the chamber door and pump the chamber by clicking the “Pump” on the Beam Control panel’s Vacuum pane. Make sure the chamber door is fully closed!
  2. While the microscope is pumping, it will take a Nav-Cam image. Wait for the process to complete and the stage to return to its previous position.
  3. Move to specimen location in X and Y.

Positioning the Sample *critical for avoiding damage to the microscope & detector*

  1. Turn on the Beam by clicking “Beam On” button in the Beam Control panel’s Column pane.
  2. Set beam voltage to 20 kV and beam current to 1.6 nA (or previously used beam current) using the toolbar drop-downs.
  • Select the ETD detector, set the dwell to 100 ns and the scanning resolution to 1536x1024, select Live imaging, and un-pause the imaging in the top left imaging window.
  1. Locate the highest point of your sample, and focus on it at ~2,000x magnification.
  2. Link the Z to Focal Working Distance by clicking the Link Z to FWD button in the toolbar.
  3. Move the stage Z-axis position to 15 mm using the Navigation panel’s Stage pane.
  • Make sure Z-Y Link is checked on the Navigation panel.
  1. Focus and stigmate on the specimen surface.
  2. Tilt stage to 45 degrees, watching specimen to make sure it doesn’t hit polepiece.
  • Lower stage Z if it looks like specimen may contact the polepiece when tilted to 70 degrees.
  • Tilt stage to 70 degrees once certain specimen won’t hit polepiece.
  1. Check “Dynamic Focus” on the Navigation panel and make sure the angle indicated matches the stage tilt angle.
  2. Drive stage to locate your area of interest

Setting up the EBSD Detector

  1. Insert the detector, watching to make sure it won’t hit the stage or specimen.
  2. Pause the CCD camera on the microscope

Set Up OIM DC 7

  1. Launch OIM DC on the EBSD PC
  2. Select desired ‘Binning’ on the Camera tab of the camera controls.
  3. Make sure “Double Clock” is checked on the Camera tab.
  4. Turn off ‘Background Subtract’ and any other checked boxes in the Image Processing box on the Image Processing tab of the camera controls.
  5. On the Camera tab, adjust Exposure to the highest it can go without reducing the frames per second (fps) and then adjust Gain to get a camera image just below saturation
    1. If you can’t get enough signal with the Gain set below 800, then increase beam current or the Exposure and repeat from step 18, until you can. (It’s best to increase beam current as this doesn’t slow the scan down.)
  6. Collect a 30 frame background on the Image Processing tab.
  7. Turn on Background Subtraction on the Image Processing tab.
  8. Load the correct phase file on the Phase tab.
  9. Turn on external X-Y control using the Ext XY toolbar button 
  10. Capture a SEM image on the Interactive tab (this will automatically index the displayed pattern).
  11. Set the working distance calibration on the toolbar dropdown.
  12. Check the confidence index (CI) and Fit on the Interactive tab. Auto Tune the calibration if needed using the Auto Tune Calibration toolbar button.
  13. Check the Hough transform settings on the Hough tab if needed.
  14. Set up scan on the Scan tab.
    1. On the SEM image on the Scan tab, draw a box covering your desired scan area
    2. Select the location and file name to store the data on the dialog box that appears.
    3. Set the scan type (square or hexagonal)
    4. Adjust the scan dimensions and start location if needed.
    5. Set the Step Size
    6. Estimate the scan time using the # of points and the current camera frame rate.
    7. Adjust Step Size or scan dimensions to alter the scan time if necessary.
    8. If saving patterns, check the “Save all patterns” checkbox on the Patterns tab.
    9. Click OK to close the dialog
  15. Click the “Start Scan” button to start the scan.

Unloading the Sample

  1. WITHDRAW THE EBSD DETECTOR!!!
  2. Wait until EBSD detector is COMPLETELY withdrawn and has stopped moving.
  3. Close OIM DC 7.
  4. Move the specimen down at least 10mm on the Z axis.
  5. Un-tilt the specimen to 0 degress on stage tilt.
  6. Vent the chamber by pressing the “Vent” button on the Beam Control panel’s Vacuum pane.

Open chamber door, remove sample(s), then gently close the chamber door and pump the chamber down by clicking the “Pump” on the Beam Control panel’s Vacuum pane. Make sure the chamber door is fully closed!