Eddy Current Testing
Reliable, High-Performance Eddy Current Testing for Conductive Materials. Get industry-leading, cost-effective eddy current inspections tailored to your exact specifications.
What Is Eddy Current Testing?
Eddy Current Testing (ET) is an electromagnetic non-destructive testing method used to inspect conductive materials for cracks, flaws, or variations in material properties.
Advantages of Eddy Current Testing
Minimal Part Preparation: No need to strip paint or coatings, saving time, labor, and material costs.
High Sensitivity and Resolution: Detects minute surface and subsurface defects.
Immediate, Quantifiable Results: Delivers real-time feedback through portable equipment and C-scan visualization.
No Contact Required: Probe does not need to physically touch the part, reducing wear and contamination.
Versatile for Complex Shapes: Inspects curved, tapered, or irregular geometries with ease.
Field-Deployable: Lightweight systems support on-site inspections at remote or confined locations.
Multi-Function Capability: Performs flaw detection, thickness measurement, and conductivity testing with one setup.
Limitations of Eddy Current Testing
While eddy current testing offers speed and versatility, it does have a few limitations:
Only applicable to conductive materials
Limited depth penetration, especially on thicker parts
Surface must be accessible to the probe
Surface roughness and coatings can affect sensitivity
Reference standards are needed for calibration and setup
Basic Principles of Eddy Current Testing
Eddy Current Testing operates on the principle of electromagnetic induction. A probe carrying alternating current produces a fluctuating magnetic field, which induces circular electrical currents—called eddy currents—in conductive materials. Changes in the flow of these currents, caused by flaws or material inconsistencies, affect the probe’s impedance. The system detects these changes and displays them as visual signals, allowing technicians to accurately identify surface cracks, coating thickness variations, or conductivity differences without removing surface finishes.
Common Applications
- Crack Detection
- Coating Thickness
- Conductivity Testing
- Heat Damage Monitoring
- Fastener Hole Inspection
- Corrosion Mapping
Quality Assurance & Compliance
- ISO 9001 & AS9100D Certified
Our Eddy Current Testing processes follow aerospace-grade quality standards, ensuring full traceability and compliance for high-performance components. - ITAR Registered
Fully compliant with International Traffic in Arms Regulations, allowing inspection of U.S. defense and government-related components. - NADCAP Accreditation
Eddy current inspections are performed in Nadcap-accredited facilities, meeting stringent aerospace and OEM quality control requirements. - 100% Dimensional Traceability
Inspection results are traceable to part serial numbers, material batches, and procedure revisions, with tolerances down to ±0.001″. - Calibrated Reference Standards
All inspections use customer- or specification-approved reference standards, coils, and probes, with full calibration documentation maintained. - Qualified, Certified Personnel
Technicians are trained and certified per SNT-TC-1A and NAS 410 standards for electromagnetic testing, ensuring consistent and repeatable results. - Continual Improvement Program
Routine internal audits, customer feedback, and industry best practices inform our ongoing refinement of procedures and training.
Frequently Asked Questions
Eddy current testing (also called electromagnetic testing or ET) induces alternating currents in a conductive part via a handheld or semi-automatic probe. Flaws or material changes disrupt those currents, altering the probe’s impedance and producing clear, real-time indications on our C-scan displays. No disassembly or destructive sectioning is required.
No. One of the biggest advantages of eddy current is minimal part preparation—we can inspect through non-conductive coatings, anodizing, and paint without stripping them off. That saves you both time and money.
- Crack Detection: Surface and near-surface flaws down to micron-level depths
Bolt-Hole Inspection: Semi-automatic scanning rigs to find fine fissures in fastener holes
Coating Thickness: Non-conductive film measurements without removing the coating
Conductivity Testing: Alloy identification, heat-treatment verification, and material uniformity
Complex Geometries: Turbine blades, impellers, tubing, and other intricate shapes
Yes, our lightweight, portable equipment is built for on-site work. Whether at your shop floor, in a hangar, or at a remote facility, we’ll bring the lab to your part and deliver immediate results.
Mitchell Laboratories only uses trained and certified personnel—all technicians meet or exceed SNT-TC-1A and NAS 410 standards for eddy current inspection, ensuring the highest level of accuracy and reliability.
Mitchell Laboratories provides eddy current testing services to a wide range of sectors, including aerospace, automotive, nuclear power, shipbuilding, metalworking/fabrication, composite materials, and government. Our services are tailored to industries that require precise, non-invasive inspection of conductive parts to ensure performance, safety, and compliance.
Lead times are quoted on a job-by-job basis to ensure accuracy, and we’re happy to accommodate emergency or rush requests. Backed by decades of refining our expedited process under strict deadlines, we minimize turnaround without ever sacrificing quality, returning your parts quickly and reliably.