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Main Authors: Franz, Cole, Prime, Michael B., Bunn, Jeffrey, Payzant, Andrew, Page, Katharine
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.05006
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author Franz, Cole
Prime, Michael B.
Bunn, Jeffrey
Payzant, Andrew
Page, Katharine
author_facet Franz, Cole
Prime, Michael B.
Bunn, Jeffrey
Payzant, Andrew
Page, Katharine
contents When calculating residual strain via neutron or X-ray diffraction, uncertainties propagated from the peak fit are often inadequate to describe the true scatter of measurements about a singular strain state, such as one that should describe a macroscopic continuum. Because diffraction is inherently a selective process, orientation dependent scatter arises from the sub-sampling of strong microstructure and strain gradients. This paper investigates the appropriateness of propagated uncertainties with reference to their original intention, i.e., noise about a mean value. Thirty-six unique orientations of strain measurements are taken at multiple locations within an additive friction-stir deposition component with fine-scale gradients (~200 um) of plastic strain, texture, and residual elastic strain. Multiple strain and stress calculation pathways are compared: direct substitution of three measurements into Hooke's law, direct inversion of any six unique orientations into the strain state tensor, and thirty-six measurement least-squares estimation. For the latter two cases, the appropriateness of the uncertainty interval is statistically evaluated based on a physical constraint: common agreement under the strain transformation law. For this sample, the direct inversion of six measurements retains a conservative estimate of the uncertainty. However, propagated uncertainties in the least-squares solution greatly underestimate the true experimental scatter. A simple pathway to estimate appropriate uncertainty intervals is suggested. These results demonstrate that interpretation of uncertainty in residual strain is strongly dependent on intrinsic, sample-dependent effects, and that oversampling orientations and statistical analysis can give more accurate results with realistic uncertainties.
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spellingShingle Uncovering hidden bias in neutron diffraction residual strain measurements
Franz, Cole
Prime, Michael B.
Bunn, Jeffrey
Payzant, Andrew
Page, Katharine
Materials Science
When calculating residual strain via neutron or X-ray diffraction, uncertainties propagated from the peak fit are often inadequate to describe the true scatter of measurements about a singular strain state, such as one that should describe a macroscopic continuum. Because diffraction is inherently a selective process, orientation dependent scatter arises from the sub-sampling of strong microstructure and strain gradients. This paper investigates the appropriateness of propagated uncertainties with reference to their original intention, i.e., noise about a mean value. Thirty-six unique orientations of strain measurements are taken at multiple locations within an additive friction-stir deposition component with fine-scale gradients (~200 um) of plastic strain, texture, and residual elastic strain. Multiple strain and stress calculation pathways are compared: direct substitution of three measurements into Hooke's law, direct inversion of any six unique orientations into the strain state tensor, and thirty-six measurement least-squares estimation. For the latter two cases, the appropriateness of the uncertainty interval is statistically evaluated based on a physical constraint: common agreement under the strain transformation law. For this sample, the direct inversion of six measurements retains a conservative estimate of the uncertainty. However, propagated uncertainties in the least-squares solution greatly underestimate the true experimental scatter. A simple pathway to estimate appropriate uncertainty intervals is suggested. These results demonstrate that interpretation of uncertainty in residual strain is strongly dependent on intrinsic, sample-dependent effects, and that oversampling orientations and statistical analysis can give more accurate results with realistic uncertainties.
title Uncovering hidden bias in neutron diffraction residual strain measurements
topic Materials Science
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.05006