Image distortions in SEM and their influences on EBSD measurements

The high sample tilt angle commonly necessary for an orientation determination by EBSD (electron back-scatter diffraction) is responsible for some simple geometrically caused, but nevertheless essential, image distortions. First of all, the influence of the tilt correction and also the trapezium distortion which appears at low magnifications will be discussed. In the second part, an additional rhomboidal distortion will be introduced which is independent of the magnification used. This distortion appears if the scanned sample surface is out of plane to the tilted stage. Even a small deviation from the parallelity produces an approximately three times bigger error of the Euler angle 91 when the sample alignment is based on the image captured from the highly tilted sample. This effect especially concerns small samples (e.g. FIB-lamellae) since they cannot be exactly aligned, but the measurements of bigger samples can also be influenced. As an example a correction procedure is described in detail, based on a repetition of the measurement after a 180 degrees sample rotation. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.