Prediction of thermal cross-slip stress in magnesium alloys from direct first principles data

We develop a first-principles model of thermally-activated cross-slip in magnesium in the presence of a random solute distribution. Electronic structure methods provide data for the interaction of solutes with prismatic dislocation cores and basal dislocation cores. Direct calculations of interaction energies are possible for solutes---K, Na, and Sc---that lower the Mg prismatic stacking fault energy to improve formability. To connect to thermally activated cross-slip, we build a statistical model for the distribution of activation energies for double kink nucleation, barriers for kink migration, and roughness of the energy landscape to be overcome by an athermal stress. These distributions are calculated numerically for a range of concentrations, as well as alternate approximate analytic expressions for the dilute limit. The analytic distributions provide a simplified model for the maximum cross-slip softening for a solute as a function of temperature. The direct interaction calculations predict lowered forming temperatures for Mg-0.7at.%Sc, Mg-0.4at.%K, and Mg-0.6at.%Na of approximately 250C.Comment: 26 pages, 7 figure

The Heterogeneous Character of Phase Transformations Caused by Limited Vacancy Mobility

ABSTRACTIn homogeneous phase transformations the order parameter proceeds towards equilibrium uniformly in all microvolumes of the system. However, defect-mediated diffusion (vacancy mechanism) involving local atomic jump processes during the early stages of transformation kinetics can produce discrete regions within which the order parameter has changed significantly embedded in an unperturbed matrix. This effect is evident in order-order transformations in B2 FeAl as measured by residual resistivity. An estimate of the heterogeneity regime is calculated in terms of vacancy diffusion parameters.</jats:p

Ordering and disordering in anisotropic L1₀-FePd

ABSTRACTNearly equiatomic FePd (Fe-52at.%Pd) alloys have been deformed by cold-rolling to 60% thickness reduction. Ordering and disordering was studied during isochronal and isothermal annealing by residual resistometry (REST) in the deformed as well as in the recrystallized state. In both cases a first order phase transition with a broad thermal hysteresis is observed. Resistivity values corresponding to thermal equilibrium of LRO-states, however, result lower in the deformed case. This is interpreted as a consequence of internal stresses leading to a preference of one variant of ordered domains and consequently to a higher degree of LRO.A detailed study by an isothermal small-step annealing treatment yields two counteracting exponential processes during order-order relaxation with an activation energy of 2.7eV and 2.4eV, respectively.</jats:p

Comparison of temperature driven ordering in bulk foil and thin film of L1₀ordered FePd

ABSTRACTChanges in the degree of long-range order of 10 μm thick FePd foil are presented and compared with results on 50 nm thick FePd films. The films were produced by dc and rf magnetron co-sputtering on Si as well as by molecular beam epitaxy co-deposition on MgO substrates. Long-range order was studied by electrical resistivity measurement, X-ray diffraction and Möβbauer spectroscopy.</jats:p