This dataset contains raw mechanical data (strain, stress and strain rate curvesand initial temperatures) for compression experiments performed on aluminum alloy 6061-T6using the NIST pulse-heated Kolsky Bar at strain rates between 2400 1/s and 2700 1/s and initialtemperatures from 23 °C to 527 °C and heating times ranging between 0.2 s and 3.5 s. At this time,the thermal history of the specimen during heating is not included in the dataset but this informationmay be included in a future update.

Materials discovery and development necessarily begins with the preparation and identification of product phase(s). Crystalline compounds can be identified by their characteristic diffraction patterns using X-rays, neutrons, and or electrons. An estimated 20,000 X-ray diffractometers and a comparable number of electron microscopes are used daily in materials research and development laboratories for this purpose.