A Look Back at the EBSD2022 Topical Conference
EBSD 2022 was a success, with 124 attendees (including 32 early-career researchers) participating virtually across 10 different time zones.
EBSD 2022 was a success, with 124 attendees (including 32 early-career researchers) participating virtually across 10 different time zones.
Extra! Extra! Topical conference “EBSD 2020″ abstract and registration deadline is extended to April 1st!
EBSD 2020 is on and now you have a little more time to finetune your abstract. The topical conference EBSD 2020 will be held June 24-26, 2020 at the University of Michigan, the site of the extremely successful EBSD 2018 meeting. EBSD 2020 will start with a day of tutorials and hands-on demonstrations followed by 2 days of technical presentations and discussions and vendor demonstrations. EBSD 2020 will be an opportunity for all practitioners of EBSD—from newcomers to seasoned professionals—to learn about the latest technical advances and share their experiences.
For more information and registration and abstract submission guidelines, please go here.
by BENJAMIN T BRUCK, University of Wisconsin
This spring, as a final project in John Fournelle’s Electron Microprobe Analysis course, our class performed experiments to compare the accuracy of energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) vs. wavelength dispersive spectroscopy (WDS), and to assess the suitability of two new materials for use as microanalysis standards. As we neared the end of the semester, John suggested that we present our findings at the Quantitative Microanalysis conference in Minneapolis. Minneapolis is only a four-hour drive away, and there was funding for students, so it seemed like a great opportunity.
Even so, I must admit, I was a little hesitant. I had never been to a “real” academic conference before, (only an undergraduate research symposium back in Boise), and the work we’d be presenting felt a little out of my wheelhouse, as it didn’t directly relate to my master’s thesis. Fortunately, John talked me into it, and I’m so glad he did. The conference was a blast!
Our class made a poster for the conference, and Emily Mixon and I tag-teamed a presentation of our results. Speaking to an audience of scholars and industry professionals was a little scary, but everyone was very encouraging, and we got lots of great questions. Ultimately, it was a fantastic opportunity to practice my poster-design and presentation skills.
My favorite part of the conference was probably the Oxford Instruments demo, where they showed off the real-time mapping capabilities of their new EDS detectors. Imagine being able to instantly see how chemical composition varies across your sample, and to navigate to different areas of your sample based on the presence or absence of certain elements. Pretty amazing stuff! It would certainly make identifying sanidine crystals for in-situ analysis much easier.
I was also excited to visit the University of Minnesota, which hosted the conference. Not to knock our own fine campus, but UMN is beautiful. One of the other students from John’s class who joined us wanted to cross the Mississippi river, so we took a walk across the Washington Avenue Bridge one evening for dinner. The University of Minnesota was also where Alfred O. C. Nier did much of his pioneering work on mass spectrometry and geochronology, so I got to nerd out a bit over visiting his old stomping grounds.
I’m so glad I attended QMA. Not only do I feel it was a rich and rewarding experience for me as a grad student, but it was also tremendous fun. As a smaller conference (especially compared to something like GSA or AGU), it felt very low-key, and all the speakers and industry associates were very approachable. I highly recommend going, if you get the chance.
First published on the University of Wisconsin’s Geoscience BLOG
EBSD 2020 is on! EBSD 2020 will be held June 24-26, 2020 (note the new dates) at the University of Michigan, the site of the extremely successful EBSD 2018 meeting. EBSD 2020 will start with a day of tutorials and hands on demonstrations followed by 2 days of technical presentations and discussions and vendor demonstrations. EBSD 2020 will be an opportunity for all practitioners of EBSD—from newcomers to seasoned professionals—to learn about the latest technical advanced and share their experiences.
Download this tri-fold brochure with more information
QMA-2019, a MAS Topical Conference, was a yet another rousing success. Meeting at the University of Minnesota with one day of tutorials and three days of talks, there was something for everyone in the X-ray microanalysis community. The program is still available here (low res/high res.) Day one was filled with vendor tutorials from Cameca, JEOL, NCI Micro, Hitachi, Electron Microscopy Sciences, Mager Scientific, ThermoFisher, Oxford Instruments, Bruker, Probe Software, SPI Supplies, ibss Group, and EDAX followed by an opening reception in the magnificent Northrop Hall. Day two was dedicated to best practices in wavelength spectrometry; day three to best practices in energy dispersive spectrometry; and the final day to XRF and cathodoluminescence. The banquet on Wednesday night was enjoyed by all but particularly those who were fortunate enough to merit additional drink tickets. Cheer and goodwill reigned particularly on the 4th floor deck overlooking the campus quad.
Most important of all, through the generosity of the NSF, MAS, our corporate sponsors and the IUMAS we were able to offer financial support to 35 Early Career Scholars. This program encourages students, post-docs and early career professionals to attend MAS Topical Conferences and other events. Along with the Goldstein Scholar Program, this program demonstrates the MAS’ commitment to building the next generation of microanalysts.
Thanks to University of Minnesota and Anette von der Handt for hosting the event, to Heather Lowers and the full organizing committee for building the strong program and taking care of every detail. ‘Til we meet again in Portland at M&M 2019…
The QMA 2019 Topical conference is now only a couple of weeks away. If you are attending the meeting, please make sure you have registered (here) and let us know your food preferences for the banquet (yum!). We also strongly encourage you to support our wonderful sponsors by signing up to attend the User group meetings on Monday (link).
The full program can be dowloaded now too:
High-resolution: here (62MB)
Low-resolution: here (12MB)
(We recommend that you right-click and save the program guide to your computer).
Katharina Marquardt presents at EBSD-2018
The latest Microanalysis Society Topical Conference on Electron Backscatter Diffraction (EBSD) took place this May 23–25 at the University of Michigan. The organizers, Steve Niezgoda (OSU), Marc DeGraef (CMU), Elena Miranda (CSUN), Andrew Cross (Wash U – St Louis), Bobby Kerns (UM) and Emmanuelle Marquis (UM) ensured a comprehensive program with speakers including Katharina Marquardt (University Bayreuth, Germany), John Wheeler (University of Liverpool, UK), Maurine Montagnat (Institut des Géosciences de l’Environnement, France), Angus Wilkinson (Oxford University, UK) and Ralf Hielscher (Chemnitz Technische Universität, Germany) to cover the range of new applications and analyses methods relevant to EBSD.
The meeting brought together a total of over 170 participants internationally including post-docs, researchers, vendors and over 70 graduate students. The conference featured three days of lectures and animated conversation on EBSD applications and developments within materials, geo-, and planetary sciences, engineering, and industry. The dynamic conference format combined interactive live demonstrations from vendors using equipment at the Michigan Center for Materials Characterization to showcase the latest EBSD hardware and software with poster and plenary sessions.
Along with a workshop and presentation on sample preparation and data analysis, Day 1 provided lab demonstrations on a flexible sign-up basis. Students and others seeking even more hands-on insights on EBSD methods were also treated to tutorials in geoscience and engineering materials within the (MC)2 laboratory space. The theme of Day 2 was “EBSD for Characterization of Microstructure Evolution” and also featured a poster session with over forty presenters. Winners of the best poster student awards are Penny Weiser (U Cambridge) for Geological Sciences and Tian Liu (U Alabama) for Materials Sciences. Day 3 emphasized advances in EBSD technology and data analysis, such as Bayesian approaches on how to most effectively use data mining approaches to assist in analyzing materials.
Represented vendors throughout the duration of the conference included BLG Vantage, Bluequartz, Buelher, Bruker, Cambridge Press, EDAX, EXpressLO LLC, E.A. Fischione, Gatan, Hitachi, JEOL, Leica Microsystems, Mager Scientific, NanoMEGAS, Oxford Instruments, TESCAN, Thermo Scientific, and ZEISS Microscopy.