In Mg-Ca alloys the grain refining mechanism,in particular regarding the role of nucleant substrates,remains the object of debates.Although native MgO is being recognised as a nucleating substrate accounting for grain...In Mg-Ca alloys the grain refining mechanism,in particular regarding the role of nucleant substrates,remains the object of debates.Although native MgO is being recognised as a nucleating substrate accounting for grain refinement of Mg alloys,the possible interactions of MgO with alloying elements that may alter the nucleation potency have not been elucidated yet.Herein,we design casting experiments of Mg-xCa alloys varied qualitatively in number density of native MgO,which are then comprehensively studied by advanced electron microscopy.The results show that grain refinement is enhanced as the particle number density of MgO increases.The native MgO particles are modified by interfacial layers due to the co-segregation of Ca and N solute atoms at the MgO/Mg interface.Using aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectroscopy,we reveal the nature of these Ca/N interfacial layers at the atomic scale.Irrespective of the crystallographic termination of MgO,Ca and N co-segregate at the MgO/Mg interface and occupy Mg and O sites,respectively,forming an interfacial structure of a few atomic layers.The interfacial structure is slightly expanded,less ordered and defective compared to the MgO matrix due to compositional deviations,whereby the MgO substrate is altered as a poorer template to nucleate Mg solid.Upon solidification in a TP-1 mould,the impotent MgO particles account for the grain refining mechanism,where they are suggested to participate into nucleation and grain initiation processes in an explosive manner.This work not only reveals the atomic engineering of a substrate through interfacial segregation but also demonstrates the effectiveness of a strategy whereby native MgO particles can be harnessed for grain refinement in Mg-Ca alloys.展开更多
In this study,aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy coupled with electron energy-loss spectroscopy(STEM-EELS)was used to investigate the atomistic structure and chemical com-position of true t...In this study,aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy coupled with electron energy-loss spectroscopy(STEM-EELS)was used to investigate the atomistic structure and chemical com-position of true twin and order twin boundaries in ferromagneticτ-MnAl-C.True twins and order twins were distinguished based on the diffraction patterns using TEM.No elemental segregation was observed at the coherent true twin boundary but some Mn enrichment within a region of about 1.5-2 nm was found at the incoherent true twin boundary.A transition region with Mn enrichment about 4-6 nm wide was found at the order twin boundary.A carbon cluster with a size of around 5 nm was also found at the twin boundary.Micromagnetic simulations were conducted to study the effect of this chemical seg-regation at twin interfaces on the magnetic properties.The results showed that the coercivity tends to increase with increasing structural and chemical disorder at the interface.展开更多
基金financial support under grant number EP/N007638/1supported by EPSRC under grant number EP/W021080/1
文摘In Mg-Ca alloys the grain refining mechanism,in particular regarding the role of nucleant substrates,remains the object of debates.Although native MgO is being recognised as a nucleating substrate accounting for grain refinement of Mg alloys,the possible interactions of MgO with alloying elements that may alter the nucleation potency have not been elucidated yet.Herein,we design casting experiments of Mg-xCa alloys varied qualitatively in number density of native MgO,which are then comprehensively studied by advanced electron microscopy.The results show that grain refinement is enhanced as the particle number density of MgO increases.The native MgO particles are modified by interfacial layers due to the co-segregation of Ca and N solute atoms at the MgO/Mg interface.Using aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectroscopy,we reveal the nature of these Ca/N interfacial layers at the atomic scale.Irrespective of the crystallographic termination of MgO,Ca and N co-segregate at the MgO/Mg interface and occupy Mg and O sites,respectively,forming an interfacial structure of a few atomic layers.The interfacial structure is slightly expanded,less ordered and defective compared to the MgO matrix due to compositional deviations,whereby the MgO substrate is altered as a poorer template to nucleate Mg solid.Upon solidification in a TP-1 mould,the impotent MgO particles account for the grain refining mechanism,where they are suggested to participate into nucleation and grain initiation processes in an explosive manner.This work not only reveals the atomic engineering of a substrate through interfacial segregation but also demonstrates the effectiveness of a strategy whereby native MgO particles can be harnessed for grain refinement in Mg-Ca alloys.
基金funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemein-schaft(DFG,German Research Foundation,No.326646134)the Austrian Science Fund(FWF,No.Ⅰ3288-N36).
文摘In this study,aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy coupled with electron energy-loss spectroscopy(STEM-EELS)was used to investigate the atomistic structure and chemical com-position of true twin and order twin boundaries in ferromagneticτ-MnAl-C.True twins and order twins were distinguished based on the diffraction patterns using TEM.No elemental segregation was observed at the coherent true twin boundary but some Mn enrichment within a region of about 1.5-2 nm was found at the incoherent true twin boundary.A transition region with Mn enrichment about 4-6 nm wide was found at the order twin boundary.A carbon cluster with a size of around 5 nm was also found at the twin boundary.Micromagnetic simulations were conducted to study the effect of this chemical seg-regation at twin interfaces on the magnetic properties.The results showed that the coercivity tends to increase with increasing structural and chemical disorder at the interface.
