Microstructure characterization and imaging of fine-grainded steel by microscopic ultrasonic techniques

An important task in materials science is the design of new steel grades with tailored microstructures for powerful mechanical properties aiming at a common optimization of contradicting properties such as weight reduction and formability versus high stiffness and strength. For this purpose techniques are required to image and characterize microstructures and probe local material properties in the micro- and nanoscale. This contribution reports on investigations of fine-grained steels by scanning acoustic microscopy (SAM) and atomic force acoustic microscopy (AFAM).