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A D V A N C E D M A T E R I A L S & P R O C E S S E S | N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 8 1 1 in which each spectrum has a one-to- one correspondence with its atomic structure and where all spectra contain the same parameters. The method was successfully applied to interpretation of complex spectra from two core-elec- tron loss spectroscopy techniques, energy-loss near-edge structure and x-ray absorption near-edge structure. However, the proposed method is not restricted to these spectra and is expected to apply to fields as diverse as semiconductor design and catalyst analysis. www.iis.u-tokyo.ac.jp. NEW RECORD FOR FASTEST 3D TOMOGRAPHIC IMAGES Material quality is highly depen- dent on the manufacturing process. For example, in casting and welding, the rate at which melts solidify and the resulting microstructure of the alloy are both important. With metallic foams, results depend on exactly how the foaming process takes place. To fully understand these processes requires tent this process varies in different granules,” says researcher Francisco Garcia-Moreno. This question is import- ant because granules of metallic com- pounds might fill complicated shapes better while foaming versus foams manufactured from a block of metal. However, the molded part will only be able to withstand stress if the grains also bond closely with one another during foaming. With the ultra-fast 3D tomography developed at BESSY II, this can now be precisely observed. www. helmholtz-berlin.de. fast sensing capability. The fastest 3D tomographic images to date have now been achieved at the BESSY II x-ray source operated by the Helmholtz-Zen- trum Berlin. As part of their research, the team investigated granules of aluminum alloys that become a metallic foam when heated. To do this, they mounted an infrared lamp above the metal gran- ulate to heat the sample to roughly 650°C. A complete 3D tomographic image with spatial resolution of 2.5 µm (pixel size) was generated every 40 mil- liseconds. The nearly 400 tomographic 3D images now allow detailed, time-resolved analysis of the process as it occurred. “We wanted to de- velop a better under- standing of how pores form in the grains— whether they also reach the granule sur- faces and to what ex- Granules of aluminum (gray) become a metallic foamwhen heated. The tomographies document the evolution of pores with time. Courtesy of HZB.