Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Peter Felfer, Benedict Ott, Mehrpad Monajem, Valentin Dalbauer, Martina Heller, Jan Josten, Chandra Macaulay
Summary: APT is a method with near-atomic spatial resolution that can be used to detect any chemical element, but hydrogen has been largely excluded due to residual emissions from stainless-steel chambers. By replacing stainless-steel parts with titanium parts, residual hydrogen can be largely removed, allowing for direct imaging of hydrogen using APT. Additionally, other contaminants such as O, OH, and H2O are also reduced by employing this instrument, although the current set-up is limited to conductive materials.
MICROSCOPY AND MICROANALYSIS
(2022)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Huijun Guo, Jianfeng Fan, Hua Zhang, Qiang Zhang, Weiguo Li, Hongbiao Dong
Summary: A simple and effective method is proposed to prepare bulk nanocrystalline pure Mg with a grain size of 20 nm using hydrogenation-disproportionation-desorption-recombination (HDDR) followed by spark plasma sintering (SPS) and hot extrusion (HE) techniques. The NC Mg samples show high tensile yield stress and compressive yield strength, which are much higher than their coarse-grain counterparts and as-cast samples.
MATERIALS SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING A-STRUCTURAL MATERIALS PROPERTIES MICROSTRUCTURE AND PROCESSING
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Yu Xia, Jiaming Liu, Xingchu Zhang, Renlong Zhou
Summary: Research findings show that laser energy absorption and field evaporation mechanisms can be described by an effective cross section, while the fluctuation of charge state is influenced by collective excitation of electrons. The average charge state is only dependent on the static field strength.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY A
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Chanwon Jung, Biswanath Dutta, Poulumi Dey, Seong-jae Jeon, Seungwoo Han, Hyun-Mo Lee, Jin-Seong Park, Seong-Hoon Yi, Pyuck-Pa Choi
Summary: A novel method of fabricating nanostructured Heusler compounds is proposed by crystallizing an amorphous precursor, resulting in two distinct nanostructures. One of the structures exhibits enhanced negative Seebeck coefficients, potentially due to low energy electron filtering and Co interstitial defects at the interfaces within the nano precipitates. Advanced characterization techniques and theoretical calculations provide detailed insights into the samples.
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Tim M. Schwarz, Hongyi Zhan, Baptist Gault, Christopher M. Gourlay, Ingrid McCarroll
Summary: The peak-aged magnesium-aluminum-rare earth (Mg-Al-RE) alloy AE44-2, produced through high-pressure die casting, exhibits a 10% increase in yield strength due to the formation of nanoscale AlMn precipitates. Atom probe tomography reveals the presence of Ce-rich clusters in the dendritic region rather than the inter-dendritic alpha-Mg in the as cast state, indicating their formation is mainly determined by solidification kinetics rather than concentration. These Ce-rich clusters act as heterogeneous nucleation sites for the formation of Al10Mn7RE2 nanoscale precipitates during the T5 heat treatment, suggesting a potential pathway for tailoring mechanical properties.
SCRIPTA MATERIALIA
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Daniel S. Mosiman, Yi-Sheng Chen, Limei Yang, Brian Hawkett, Simon P. Ringer, Benito J. Marinas, Julie M. Cairney
Summary: Two techniques were developed to encapsulate and prepare HAP NPs into APT tips for characterization, revealing significant tradeoffs between encapsulant methods/materials for HAP characterization and the need for further technique development to select a more robust approach. This work serves as an essential starting point for advancing knowledge about the nanoscale spatiochemistry of HAP NPs.
Article
Microscopy
Alec C. Day, Andrew J. Breen, Simon P. Ringer
Summary: Spatially accurate atom probe tomography reconstructions are essential for quantitative spatial measurements in nanostructural analysis. Crystallographic information within the atom probe data can be used to calibrate tomographic reconstruction, but traditional methods are error-prone and time-consuming. A new approach proposed in this study simplifies the process and is applicable to a wider range of atom probe situations.
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
K. N. Sasidhar, Xuyang Zhou, Michael Rohwerder, Dirk Ponge
Summary: Through optimized conditions, we have conducted short-term, controlled oxidation experiments of Fe-10 at% Cr alloy films at 200 degrees C. Nanoscale structural characterization using four-dimensional scanning transmission electron microscopy (4d-STEM) and chemical characterization using atom probe tomography (APT) have provided insights into the phase transformation pathway during localized, inward-progressing oxidation at low temperature. Direct nucleation of a metastable spinel-structured oxide, with suppression of corundum-structured Cr2O3, has been observed even at the initial stages. A "partitioning-free oxide nucleation mechanism" is proposed to explain the non-equilibrium transformation pathway under highly restricted kinetics conditions.
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Junyang He, Rui Wang, Na Li, Zhongrun Xiao, Ji Gu, Hongyao Yu, Zhongnan Bi, Weihong Liu, Min Song
Summary: Through multi-scale characterizations from electron channeling contrast imaging to atom probe tomography, we have directly demonstrated that the massive cracking events in selective-laser-melted Haynes 230 superalloy are caused by the continuous decoration of an M(23)C(6-)type thin film at grain boundaries. Despite being strongly depleted from the carbide, impurities Si, Mn, and Fe greatly enhance the susceptibility to cracking.
MATERIALS RESEARCH LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Isabel Pantenburg, Marvin Cronau, Torben Boll, Annalena Duncker, Bernhard Roling
Summary: Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are crucial for electric vehicles and portable electronic devices, but their long-term stability is a concern. This study uses atom probe tomography to explore the structure of the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) in a graphite composite anode, revealing the presence of an apolar organic microphase throughout the SEI. This finding challenges the prevailing two-layer SEI model and provides insights for improving the passivation capability of the SEI.
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Martin Detrois, Zongrui Pei, Tao Liu, Jonathan D. Poplawsky, Michael C. Gao, Paul D. Jablonski, Jeffrey A. Hawk
Summary: The study found that silicon has a negative impact on the improvement of creep properties in Ni-based superalloys when using B, as silicon decreases the grain boundary cohesion, offsetting the effects of B segregation.
SCRIPTA MATERIALIA
(2021)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Colin A. Stewart, Richard W. Fonda, Keith E. Knipling
Summary: An ICME approach was utilized to design a fully Austenitic, Mn-stabilized steel strengthened by nano-scale precipitate phases. Experimental verification confirmed that significant strengthening can be achieved by adding Cu together with Ni+Al, forming FCC-Cu and beta-NiAl nano-precipitates.
SCRIPTA MATERIALIA
(2021)
Review
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Przemyslaw Klups, Daniel Haley, Andrew J. London, Hazel Gardner, James Famelton, Benjamin M. Jenkins, Jonathan M. Hyde, Paul A. J. Bagot, Michael P. Moody
Summary: Atom probe tomography (APT) has the capability to identify and characterize early stages of precipitation at length scales not achievable by other techniques. The study demonstrates the use of an open-source tool, PosgenPy, to validate the selection of cluster search parameters, ensuring accurate cluster number density and composition calculations.
MICROSCOPY AND MICROANALYSIS
(2022)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
P. Maugis, M. Jouiad, F. Roch, C. Perrin-Pellegrino, K. Hoummada
Summary: Experimental and modeling studies on carbon and nitrogen segregation to dislocations in C-Mn ferritic steels were reported. A model based on McLean theory was established to describe the competitive segregation of carbon and nitrogen in the Cottrell atmospheres around dislocations, taking into account the effect of dislocation density. It was found that the plastic strain during tensile test can modify the material properties by changing the nature and quantity of segregated atoms around dislocations, leading to a preferential segregation of nitrogen over carbon.
MATERIALS SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING A-STRUCTURAL MATERIALS PROPERTIES MICROSTRUCTURE AND PROCESSING
(2023)
Article
Geochemistry & Geophysics
Rick Verberne, Steven M. Reddy, David W. Saxey, Denis Fougerouse, William D. A. Rickard, Zakaria Quadir, Noreen J. Evans, Chris Clark
Summary: Element mobility is crucial in geological processes, and understanding how elements migrate in minerals is essential for geochemical and geochronological applications. This study investigates the trace-element composition of dislocations on twin boundaries in rutile using atom probe tomography and transmission electron microscopy. The findings reveal that dislocations in rutile can act as both fast-diffusion pathways and traps for trace elements.
EARTH AND PLANETARY SCIENCE LETTERS
(2022)