Nanoscale characterization of powder materials by atom probe tomography

The tomographic atom probe (TAP) is a three-dimensional quantitative high-resolution microscope which provides, at the atomic scale, the spatial distribution of atoms in the analysed specimen. Until now, this technique was little used to characterize powder materials due the difficulties linked to atom probe specimen preparation. Nowadays, the development of new specimen preparation methods allows a systematic characterization of powder materials down to the atomic scale. In this paper, we report the results of TAP analyses of magnetoresistive Cu80Co20 granular alloys and nanocomposite SmCo5/α-Fe alloys.

Graphical AbstractToday, the development of specimen preparation techniques for atom probe tomography, allows a systematic characterization of a wide range of powder materials down to the atomic scale. The capabilities of the tomographic atom probe (TAP) are illustrated by two distinct studies. Cu80Co20 granular alloys and SmCo5/Fe nanocomposite materials mechanically milled was characterized by TAP. The results give crucial information for the understanding of the magnetic properties of these materials.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide