Microdeformation patterns of lamellar TiAl specimens with various grain sizes under uniaxial tension are mapped using the
micro/nano experimental mechanics technique called SIEM (Speckle Interferometry w ith Electron Microscopy). The stress–strain
relationships were obtained from deformations within decreasing areas ranging from mm
2 to μm
2. We found that the stress–strain relationship of the material depends on the size of strain measuring area in relation to
the grain size. The stiffness at a grain boundary can be as large as 7–10 times more than that of the grain itself. From the
data obtained so far, it seems that the traditional way of using PST (polysynthetically twinned) single crystal to predict
polycrystalline behavior may not be appropriate.
Keywords Computer aided speckle interferometry - Full-field strain mapping - Nondestructive evaluation - Scanning electron microscopy - Speckle interferometry with electron microscopy