Advancing in situ hydrogen embrittlement studies through an integrated charging cell for SEM micromechanical testing
Abstract
A comprehensive understanding of hydrogen-deformation interactions at the microscale is essential for revealing hydrogen embrittlement mechanisms. In situ micromechanics with simultaneous hydrogen (H-) charging has therefore gained traction in recent times. In the present study, we aim to address the drawbacks of current in situ H-charging setups by developing a more robust 3-electrode-based back-side charging system for a scanning electron microscope to perform various micromechanical tests, especially for thin samples (< 1 mm). The development of the setup is discussed and demonstrated through micropillar compression of an Fe-25Cr single crystal (011) during active H-charging. Results indicate that H increases the yield strength and the strain-hardening ability by activating multiple slip systems and significant dislocation entanglement, as revealed by electron microscopy, consistent with previous reports on BCC materials. Activation volume estimation from strain-rate jump tests suggests a possible competition between the solute-drag effect on dislocation mobility and dislocation forest hardening.
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BibTeX
@article{bathini2026advancing,
title = {{Advancing in situ hydrogen embrittlement studies through an integrated charging cell for SEM micromechanical testing}},
author = {Lavakumar Bathini and Guillaume Kermouche and Sergio Sao Joao and Frédéric Christien and Szilvia Kalácska},
journal = {Scripta Materialia},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1016/j.scriptamat.2026.117645},
eprint = {2608.11773},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://hal-emse.ccsd.cnrs.fr/emse-05858064v1},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Advancing in situ hydrogen embrittlement studies through an integrated charging cell for SEM micromechanical testing
AU - Lavakumar Bathini
AU - Guillaume Kermouche
AU - Sergio Sao Joao
AU - Frédéric Christien
AU - Szilvia Kalácska
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/24
JO - Scripta Materialia
DO - 10.1016/j.scriptamat.2026.117645
UR - https://hal-emse.ccsd.cnrs.fr/emse-05858064v1
AB - A comprehensive understanding of hydrogen-deformation interactions at the microscale is essential for revealing hydrogen embrittlement mechanisms. In situ micromechanics with simultaneous hydrogen (H-) charging has therefore gained traction in recent times. In the present study, we aim to address the drawbacks of current in situ H-charging setups by developing a more robust 3-electrode-based back-side charging system for a scanning electron microscope to perform various micromechanical tests, especially for thin samples (< 1 mm). The development of the setup is discussed and demonstrated through micropillar compression of an Fe-25Cr single crystal (011) during active H-charging. Results indicate that H increases the yield strength and the strain-hardening ability by activating multiple slip systems and significant dislocation entanglement, as revealed by electron microscopy, consistent with previous reports on BCC materials. Activation volume estimation from strain-rate jump tests suggests a possible competition between the solute-drag effect on dislocation mobility and dislocation forest hardening.
SN - 1359-6462
SN - 1872-8456
ER -