Formation of Metastable Disordered Ni3Al by Pulsed Laser-Induced Rapid Solidification

Abstract

Thin films of Ni3 formed by co-evaporation onto insulating substrates form single phase fcc disordered lattice upon rapid solidification following excimer laser-induced melting with an interface velocity of ~4 m/s. Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) and x-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses exhibit no superlattice diffraction at room temperature. Resistivity measurements, indicating that the disordered phase has a higher resistivity and much smaller temperature coefficient at room temperature than the stable ordered (L12) phase, permit us to monitor phase changes and ordering on a fast time-scale. Subsequent annealing recovers long-range order, with resistivity measurements indicating that reordering begins just below 300 degrees C.