About

The Hultgren Laboratory was established as a KTH Infrastructure in 2019 to provide students and established researchers with enhanced access to a broad portfolio of materials characterisation instruments as well as training.

The lab’s versatile facilities play an integral role in supporting the study of a wide range of materials, with particular strengths in analysing metallic and hard materials.

We offer instrumentation that has been specified and commissioned by experts in materials characterisation, together with staff dedicated to supporting users.

The laboratory is named after Professor Axel Hultgren, KTH’s first Professor of Metallurgy, in recognition of his pioneering contribution to using materials characterisation measurements as a foundation for theoretical advances.

Recent laboratory developments

2026

• Dome furnace for conducting heat treatments in the XRD instrument upgraded
• New TenuPol-5 for TEM sample preparation
• New Accutom-10 precision saw

2025

• Refurbishment of the Bruker Discover D8 XRD
• Installation of a 10 kN universal testing machine for tension/compression testing
• Installation of a 100 kN universal testing machine equipped with furnace and environmental chamber for cryo/hot testing
• Grinding tools replaced with newer models

2024

• A new laser cutter extends our sample preparation portfolio
• A new cold/hot rolling machine extends our sample preparation portfolio
• New high‑resolution light optical microscope
• New ion‑beam polisher to improve EBSD sample preparation

2023

• New nano-indentation instrument
• New in situ micro-mechanical indentor device for use in the SEM-FIB

2022

• Commisioning of the Atom Probe Tomograph (APT), a novel instrument that identifies atomic species and their distribution within a sample

2019

• The Hultgren Laboratory becomes a KTH infrastructure - a recognition of established routines for maintenance of laboratory instruments as well as user access, training and support