Short-Duration Financial Aid for Major Instrument (Atom Probe Tomography - Saarland University)
Coating and Surface Technology
Final Report Abstract
The unique and superior characteristics of RuAl system compared to other intermetallic systems support more research to be carried out for reaching improved understanding of the diffusion kinetics and the different phase formation mechanisms active in this system. The APT investigations of the Ru/Al MLs did not produce high quality data to reach the objectives required, due to induced artifacts in the measurements. However, alternative solutions were carried out to fulfill the aims of this project. One solution was to use optimized measuring conditions for increasing the yield from the Ru/Al ML measurements. The second solution was to use a similar ML system in terms of diffusion kinetics and phase formation mechanisms. The results of these alternative solutions were extremely successful. The results from this short period project have helped to answer open questions about diffusion kinetics and phase formation mechanisms in Ru/Al ML system. It has also helped to build a future plan to overcome some artifacts in the APT measurements, which are common limitations of the technique.