Data-driven approach for synchrotron X-ray Laue microdiffraction scan analysis

Abstract: We propose a novel data-driven approach for analyzing synchrotron Laue X-ray microdiffraction scans based on machine learning algorithms. The basic architecture and major components of the method are formulated mathematically. We demonstrate it through typical examples including polycrystalline BaTiO$_3$, multiphase transforming alloys and finely twinned martensite. The computational pipeline is implemented for beamline 12.3.2 at the Advanced Light Source, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. The conventional analytical pathway for X-ray diffraction scans is based on a slow pattern by pattern crystal indexing process. This work provides a new way for analyzing X-ray diffraction 2D patterns, independent of the indexing process, and motivates further studies of X-ray diffraction patterns from the machine learning prospective for the development of suitable feature extraction, clustering and labeling algorithms.