Skip to main content
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Behavior of Crystalline Xe Nanoprecipitates during Coalescence

Journal Article · · Physical Review Letters
;  [1];  [2]; ; ;  [3]
  1. Materials Science Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Illinois 60439 (United States)
  2. Joule Physics Laboratory, University of Salford, Manchester M5 4WT (United Kingdom)
  3. National Research Institute for Metals, 3-13 Sakura, Tsukuba 305 (Japan)

[ital In situ] high-resolution electron microscopy has been used to observe nanoprecipitates of crystalline Xe in faceted cavities in Al during coalescence induced by 1.0thinspthinspMeV electron irradiation at 300thinspthinspK. Atomic-level fluctuations of cavity facets result in shape changes and precipitate motion leading to coalescence. There is no apparent elastic interaction between precipitates separated by as little as 0.5thinspthinspnm. After coalescence, crystalline Xe conforms by plastic deformation without melting to changes in cavity shape. Cavity volume, not surface area, is conserved during coalescence, implying that cavity pressure is not determined solely by the interface tension. [copyright] [ital 1999] [ital The American Physical Society]

Research Organization:
Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL
OSTI ID:
6463356
Journal Information:
Physical Review Letters, Journal Name: Physical Review Letters Vol. 83:8; ISSN 0031-9007; ISSN PRLTAO
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English