The selection of a reference diffraction pattern for high (angular) resolution electron backscatter diffraction (HR-EBSD) significantly affects the precision of the calculated strain and rotation maps.
This effect has been demonstrated in a paper* in Ultramicroscopy by Abdo Koko and Vivian Tong (NPL), Angus Wilkinson and James Marrow in plastically deformed body-centred cubic and face-centred cubic ductile metals and elastically deformed single-crystal silicon.
An empirical relationship is identified between the cross-correlation parameter and angular error, which is used in an iterative algorithm to identify the optimal reference pattern to maximise the precision of HR-EBSD measurements.
'An iterative method for reference pattern selection in high-resolution electron backscatter diffraction (HR-EBSD)'.