Non-destructive Neutron Surface Residual Stress Analysis

Abstract

Diffraction is a powerful tool for investigation of residual as well as applied stresses in engineering materials and components. Both X-ray and neutron diffraction can be used for this purpose. The interest in neutron stress analysis stems from the high penetrating power of neutrons when compared to laboratory X-ray sources, i.e. several cm instead of a few tens of µm in metallic materials. This contribution gives an overview on current instrumental and methodical developments for non-destructive through surface strain measurements, which bridges the gap between X-rays and neutrons analysis.