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arXiv · 2206.11667

Pseudo-4D view of the growth and form of locked eutectic colonies

Paul Chao·George R. Lindemann·Ashwin J. Shahani
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Abstract

We investigate solidification of an Al-Al2Cu as a model system to understand the emergence of patterns (such as lamellar, rod and maze-like) within eutectic colonies. To uncover the morphological transitions in-situ and in 3D, we introduce here a new synchrotron-based, X-ray imaging procedure. Our method simultaneously maximizes the temporal (200 ms) and spatial resolution ($0.69^2 \mu m^2/pixel$) over that of traditional imaging approaches. The wealth of information obtained from this procedure enables us to visualize the development of a crystallographically `locked' eutectic microstructure in the presence of thermosolutal convection. This data provides direct insight into the mechanism of the lamella-to-rod transition as the eutectic accommodates fluctuations in interfacial composition and growth velocity. We find that this transition is brought about by impurity-driven forces acting on the solid-solid-liquid trijunction that must overcome the stiffness of the solid-solid interfaces. Our pseudo-4D imaging strategy holds broad appeal to the solidification science community, as it can overcome the space-time trade-off in conventional in situ X-ray microtomography.

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Paul Chao, George R. Lindemann, Ashwin J. Shahani. 2022-06-23. Pseudo-4D view of the growth and form of locked eutectic colonies. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actamat.2022.118335

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