Atom Probe Tomography and Its Application in the R&D of Al Alloys for the Automotive Industry

Atom Probe Tomography (APT) is a powerful technique for analyzing solid materials and thin films by evaporating ions from the surface using voltage or laser pulses. It combines Time-of-Flight mass spectrometry with 3D spatial data to create near-atomic resolution models. APT is ideal for localized chemical analysis and is used in various fields, including material and nuclear sciences, semiconductor development, solar technology, metallurgy, ceramics, and grain boundary analysis.


Agenda

10:00 - 10:30
Introduction to the APT technique by Dr. Katherine Rice
- Principles of APT;
- Sample preparation requirements;
- Survey of applications including geology and additive manufacturing of metals.

10:30 - 10:50
APT in the R&D of Al Alloys and its sustainable production for automotive industry by Dr. Zeqin Liang
- Aging Behavior of Aluminium Alloys;
- Challenges in studying aging behavior, clustering and precipitation;
- Atomic scale complexity and continuous transformation without clear energy barriers;
- Complementary characterization methods (DSC, Positron, HRTEM);
Case Study: 6xxx Alloys in automotive industry;
Role of APT in addressing challenges in sustainable aluminum solutions.

10:50 - 11:00
Q&A

11:00 - 11:30
Informal Discussions


Speakers:

Dr. Katherine Rice, Applications and Market Development Manager at CAMECA Instruments in Madison, WI. She received her PhD in Chemical Engineering from the University of Colorado-Boulder and completed an NRC postdoc at NIST-Boulder before joining CAMECA in 2014. She also obtained her MBA in Marketing from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater in 2018.

Dr. Zeqin Liang received his master’s degree in Materials Engineering from South China University of Technology and his PhD in Materials Science from TU Berlin. He joined Novelis, world leader in aluminum rolling and recycling in 2013. As a Lead Scientist, Dr. Liang has a thorough expertise in the R&D of aluminum alloys covering simulation, modeling and experiments.