The crystallographic texture is a key feature of crystalline organization in materials, yet no technique exists to locally characterize complex textured materials in 3D. In this manuscript, we present Texture Tomography (TexTOM) as a computational tool to provide full 3D texture information from X-ray diffraction measurements.

The hierarchical organization of bone is a key feature of this important biomineralized tissue. A combination of small- and wide-angle X-ray scattering tensor tomography with diffraction tomography and synchrotron computed tomography demonstrates how mineral properties and the orientational relationship between mineral and nanostructure vary across the tissue.

Biological materials obtain their properties through hierarchical structuring. Understanding such materials calls for multimodal and multiscale approaches. Based on two example systems, bone and shell, we discuss current analytical approaches, their capabilities and limits, and how to tie them together to fully cover the different length scales involved in understanding materials' functions. We will further discuss advances in this area and future developments, the possible roadblocks (radiation damage, data quantity, sample preparation) and potential ways to overcome them.