Grain to grain slip activity in plastically deformed Zr determined by X-ray micro-diffraction line profile analysis

The slip system activity in individual grains of a plastically deformed Zircaloy-2 specimen was determined by micro-diffraction X-ray line profile analysis measurements at the ID22 beam line of the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility synchrotron in Grenoble, France. The grain to grain orientation map was determined by electron back scattering diffraction (EBSD) and this was used for orienting individual grains to produce specific Bragg reflections. Anisotropic X-ray line broadening was evaluated in terms of dislocation densities, the average sub-grain size and slip activity. Slip line traces were evaluated in the EBSD micrographs in correlation with the grain orientation. The X-ray and EBSD correlation indicated that 〈a〉-type dislocations with considerable prismatic slip activity dominated plastic deformation in this alloy and that, with increasing dislocation density, the fractions of 〈a〉- and 〈c〉-type dislocations increased.