On the room-temperature annealing of cryogenically rolled copper

The electron-backscatter-diffraction (EBSD) technique was applied to investigate room-temperature annealing processes in cryogenically rolled copper during long-term (similar to 1.5 years) storage at ambient temperature. Static recrystallization appeared to be nucleated as result of both grain-boundary bulging and recovery. A bimodal recrystallized grain size distribution appeared to be a result of these two competing mechanisms. The ultra-fine grain copper produced via cryogenic deformation was deduced to be prone to abnormal grain growth after long static storage at room-temperature. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.