This paper deals with the implementation of a theoretically described method to determine residual stresses in real space directly by means of small gauge volumes. For this purpose, beam limiting masks were designed, manufactured, and investigated in first experiments. Image series taken with a position sensitive CCD camera demonstrate the ability to detect interferences from gauge volumes beneath the sample surface by defined slit geometries. The experiments show that due to the highly absorbing masks the amount of detectable photons is poor, and thus long exposure times are necessary to receive suitable data. For increasing measurement depths (altering masks) a decrease in the intensity can be detected which leads to the assumption that the diffracted photons originate from deeper regions in the material. A model was developed to simulate the diffraction conditions with different mask layouts and material properties. Modeling yields consistent results with experimental data, and thus provides a basis for further improvements of the experimental setup and the realization and assessment of residual stress measurements.

For residual stress evaluation in complex substrate-coating systems, energy-dispersive (ED) diffraction with energies up to 100 keV can be applied to analyze the near interface residual stress state in the substrate, because the high energy white beam penetrates the coating completely. By the example of an Al2O3/TiCN on WC coating system we have studied the feasibility for using the coating reflections being stored in the ED diffraction patterns together with the substrate diffraction lines to analyze the residual stress state in individual sublayers of which the coating system consists. The results indicate that the ED method is suitable to detect even steep intralayer stress gradients, if the diffraction conditions are adapted to the coating geometry.