| Summary: | Laser powder-bed fusion (LPBF) enables the production of difficult-to-machine materials with near-net shape and complex geometries. Components made of tool steels produced by LPBF, even using high preheating temperature, tend to show residual porosity, cracks, and high residual stresses. Hot isostatic pressing (HIP) is able to densify components and modify their microstructure. Moreover, compared to conventional heat treatment at ambient pressure, rapid cooling within the HIP vessel can alleviate thermal stresses, warping or cracking during quenching. In this study, the effects of isostatic pressure on microstructure evolution and residual stresses are investigated. Samples were produced by LPBF. Partly, they were conventionally heat treated by austenitizing, quenching, and tempering, partly using a HIP-device with an integrated quenching facility. The microstructure was characterized by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy employing energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction analysis. The results showed that besides the densification of the material to the porosity of 0.001%, HIP influenced the microstructure evolution by retarding recrystallization during austenitization due to the pressure and led to slight compressive residual stresses around 11 MPa on the surface of components<b>.</b>
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