Applications of analytical electron microscopy to guide the design of boron carbide
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AbstractCompositional analysis of boron carbide on nanometer length scales to examine or interpret atomic mechanisms, for example, solidstate amorphization or grainboundary segregation, is challenging. This work reviews advancements in highresolution microanalysis to characterize multiple generations of boron carbide. First, factor microanalysis will be introduced as a powerful (scanning) transmission electron microscopy ((S)TEM) analytical framework to accurately characterize boron carbide. Three case studies involving the application of factor microanalysis will then be presented: (1) accurate stoichiometry determination of Bdoped boron carbide using factor microanalysis and electron energy loss spectroscopy, (2) normalized quantification of silicon grainboundary segregation in Sidoped boron carbide, and (3) calibration of a scanning electron microscope Xray energydispersive spectroscopy (XEDS) system to measure compositional homogeneity differences of B/Sidoped arcmelted boron carbides in the asmelted and annealed conditions. Overall, the improvement and application of advanced analytical tools have helped better understand processingmicrostructureproperty relationships and successfully manufacture highperformance ceramics.
