A study of grain boundary diffusion of oxygen in hot-rolled steel sheets was carried out by means of time-of-flight secondary-ion-mass-spectrometry. This involves polishing of the sample surface prior to the oxygen exposure. A nickel layer deposited after exposure ensures a homogeneous extraction field for time-of-flight secondary-ion-mass-spectrometry measurements at the Ni-steel interface. The sample was bevelled at an angle of 11.5° in order to spread the diffusion pathway out by a factor of 5. The oxygen distribution was then acquired via time-of-flight secondary-ion-mass-spectrometry in imaging mode from which diffusion parameters were calculated according to the Whipple-Le Claire's approach.

Oxygen Diffusion in Grain Boundaries: a ToF-SIMS Investigation on Hot-Rolled Steel Sheets. M.Holzweber, M.Kriegl, A.Schintlmeister, D.Paesold, H.Danninger, H.Hutter: Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry, 2011, 400[3], 659-63