The importance of a material's microstructure is well known. When problems arise working with precious metals and alloys, the causes of failure can be understood and possible solutions found by examing the material's microstructure. The traditional stereo optical microscope is very useful for a good three-dimensional view of a sample, but the magnification is limited. Furthermore, the most popular techniques to observe microstructures, such as optical metallography and scanning electron microscopy, usually give a two-dimensional view of the sample. New 3D techniques are now available but they are not yet widely used, especially in the precious metals field. The aim of this work is to review many different microstructures in 3D, from fracture surfaces to as-cast surfaces or material defects, and show the information that the stereoscopic view can offer. This will be done through anaglyph images obtained by the scanning electron microscope and by providing the audience with the proper glasses for 3D vision.

Author: Paolo Battaini