Kikuchi bandlet method for the accurate deconvolution and localization of Kikuchi bands in Kikuchi diffraction patterns

Abstract

In order to retrieve crystallographic information from an electron backscatter Kikuchi diffraction pattern, its Kikuchi bands have to be localized. One of the main reasons for the limited precision of the present Kikuchi band localization methods is that the diffuse edges of a Kikuchi band are convoluted by many other Kikuchi bands that intersect them. To improve the localization accuracy, Kikuchi bands have to be deconvoluted. In this article, a new method for the deconvolution and localization of Kikuchi bands is presented. The deconvolution is based on the fact that, in a Kikuchi pattern, there are a number of Kikuchi bands that are not parallel to the bands that intersect them. It is performed in Fourier space. After deconvolution, localization is carried out by a quantitative shape analysis of the intensity profiles of the deconvoluted Kikuchi bands. Using the introduced method, for a real electron backscatter Kikuchi diffraction pattern with 45° half capture angle and 0.12° per pixel maximum scale factor, the characteristic hyperbolic features of the Kikuchi bands can be localized with a precision of better than 0.1° in reflection angle.