Strength of grain boundaries in multi-phase steels
One of the key players that controls hardening and fracture toughness of AHS steels is the crystallographic character distribution and morphology of grain and phase boundaries. This project aims at understanding and optimizing crystallographic, morphological, and chemical properties of such boundaries in AHS steels in order to improve the mechanical behavior of the material.

(a) EBSD image quality (IQ) map, (b) ECC image of a crack induced in a ferrite-martensite dual phase microstructure during fatigue deformation.
© Max-Planck-Institut für Eisenforschung GmbH