SSV has at its disposal a complete set of instruments for the analysis of the microstructure of ceramic, glass-ceramic and refractory materials, ranging from optical stereomicroscopes, to a scanning electron microscope equipped with a field-emission source (FE-SEM) and chemical microanalysis EDS and WDS probes, to a X-ray fluorescence micro-spectrophotometer (micro-XRF).
The integrated use of these analysis techniques allows to carry out localized morphological and compositional characterizations, with resolutions that can reach up to tens of nanometers, thanks to which it is possible to document the presence of preferential orientations, the degree of microporosity, the distribution of the binding phases, the interlocking of crystals, etc.