Stable binary nanocrystalline alloys and methods of identifying same
AssigneeMassachusetts Institute of Technology
InventorsHeather A. Murdoch, Christopher A. Schuh
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Abstract
Identifying a stable phase of a binary alloy comprising a solute element and a solvent element. In one example, at least two thermodynamic parameters associated with grain growth and phase separation of the binary alloy are determined, and the stable phase of the binary alloy is identified based on the first thermodynamic parameter and the second thermodynamic parameter, wherein the stable phase is one of a stable nanocrystalline phase, a metastable nanocrystalline phase, and a non-nanocrystalline phase.
Claims7
A method of identifying and fabricating a stable phase of a binary alloy comprising a solute element and a solvent element, the method comprising:
- (A) determining at least a first thermodynamic parameter associated with grain growth of the binary alloy and a second thermodynamic parameter associated with phase separation of the binary alloy;
- (B) identifying the stable phase of the binary alloy based on the first thermodynamic parameter and the second thermodynamic parameter by comparing the first thermodynamic parameter and the second thermodynamic parameter with a predetermined set of respective thermodynamic parameters to identify the stable phase;
- and
- (C) subsequent to the identifying, fabricating the identified stable phase of the binary alloy;
- wherein the stable phase is one of a stable nanocrystalline phase, a metastable nanocrystalline phase, and a non-nanocrystalline phase.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.