Select another Method of Metallurgical Analysis: Heat Treatment Evaluation Macro-etching Micro-structure Assessment Microhardness

Optical Metallography

The microstructure of a material is an important aspect in failure analysis and material assessment. Optical metallography is the examination the microstructure of an etched metallic specimen using a metallographic microscope. These metallographs use coaxial light source objectives to examine the microstructure of a material up to 2000x magnification. Photomicrographs, images of the microstructure, are taken and stored using digital cameras or conventional film based cameras. In some cases filters are used to accentuate phases, surface relief or features of interest.