Micro-mechanical investigation of maraging steel during in-situ tensile test

The research aimed to examine the development of slip bands in 12Cr-9Ni maraging stainless steel through in-situ tensile testing in scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). A comprehensive approach was employed, which included assessing strain distribution and the grain boundary character distribution (GBCD) at the intermediate plastic strain steps. During plastic deformation, dislocation pile-up leads to the formation of slip bands in the material. It was discovered that slip band formation, as well as slip line spacing, exhibit crystallographic orientation dependence. Finally, fractography was employed to unveil the likely fracture mechanism and further link it to the formation of slip bands at higher strain levels.