SURFACE SCIENCE 31(1972) 257-274 0 North-!lolland Publishing Co.

THE STRUCTURE OF NEARLY COHERENT

fee: bee BOUNDARIES IN A Cu-Cr ALLOY

M. G. HALL*, H. I. AARONSON** and K. R. KINSMA

Scientific Research Staf, Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, Michigan 48121, U.S.A.

In contrast to past investigations of dislocation structures at interphase boundaries, which

have been confined largely to systems in which the atomic matching at these boundary
orientations was obviously good, the present study was concerned with fee: bee boundaries,
where the two lattices do not appear to match closely at any boundary orientation. Using
the precipitation of Cr-rich bee crystals from the fee matrix of a Cu-0.33 wt% Cr alloy
as a model system, however, well defined planar boundaries were often observed to develop
in overaged samples. Transmission electron microscopic studies showed that such facets
were invariably arrayed with one or two networks of parallel interfacial dislocations; within
a given network, the dislocations were spaced from 100 to 1000 A apart. Orientation
relationship studies indicated a range of relationships varying from the Nishiyama-Wasser-
man to the Kurdjumow-Sachs; habit planes were usually irrational in both matrix and
precipitate lattices. Most of these rather complex observations can be understood, however,
if the (nominally) planar interfaces are modeled as sequences of steps whose broad faces
are formed by {1lo},,,//{1 11 }fcc. By restricting the extent of the steps to regions of good
fit between the two lattices, most of the misfit between them can be successfully accom-
modated. On this model, the interfacial dislocations play only a secondary role, serving
to eliminate the residual mismatch accumulated within the systems of steps.

1. Introduction

In recent years the nature of coherent and nearly coherent (dislocation)

interphase boundaries has been the subject of a number of investigationsl).
Studies of precipitation systemsl-s), of directionally solidified eutectics425)
and of model systems based on pseudomorphic epitaxy between vapor de-
posited metal films63 ‘), have served to advance our understanding of the
factors which influence the character and kinetics of implacing misfit-accom-
modating interfacial dislocations. However, these investigations were per-
formed on systems where the crystal structure parameters of the two phases
were such that the lattice planes forming the interface matched well, with the
result that the existence of the dislocation or fully coherent boundaries ob-
served experimentally was essentially predictable. In contrast the present re-
search was undertaken to investigate a situation in which equivalent struc-
* Present address: Centre for Materials Science, The University of Birmingham, P.O. Box
363, Birmingham, England.
** Present address: Dept. Metallurgical Engineering, Michigan Technological University,
Houghton, Michigan 49931, U.S.A.

257
258 M.G. HALL,H.I. AARONSON AND K. R. KlNSMAN

tural reasoning would not conventionally lead to prediction of a dislocation

interphase boundary.
It was to the resolution of the following dichotomy that the present re-
search was directed. It is well known that during the proeutectoid ferrite reac-
tion in Fe-C alloys, sideplates and intragranular plates of ferrite form parallel
to a limited number of planes in the austenite. Consequently it was proposeds)
that the broad faces of these plates would serve as a structural barrier to
growth, in particular of the dislocation type. In support of this concept re-
cent studies g, of the thickening kinetics of ferrite sideplates have demonstrat-
ed the now familiar characteristics of dislocation interphase boundaries
which migrate by a ledge mechanisms): the overall thickening kinetics were
usually less than those allowed by volume diffusion-control, and the plates
exhibited periods of quiescence during which thickening did not occur. How-
ever, as pointed out by Mehl et al.lO) and also by Paxtonll), the fee austenite and
bee ferrite structures do not match well, given the experimentally determined
habit planes and orientation relationships. This observation leads to theconflic-
ting suggestion that a disordered structure exists at all boundary orientations.
Current microscopic techniques do not allow a direct experimental in-
vestigation of the broad faces of ferrite plates in the Fe-C system since the
martensite transformation destroys the austenite phase during quenching.
This circumstance necessitated the use of a model system. The bee chromium-
rich precipitates formed in the fee matrix of a Cu-Cr alloy were found of a
convenient size and distribution for an electron microscopy study. Since the
lattice parameter ratios (~~‘/&‘) for austenite/ferrite and copper/chromium
are 1.255 and 1.253 respectively, the system was thought likely to serve as a
crystallographically useful model as well. Apart from the particle coarsening
work of Rezekts), which was restricted to comparatively short aging times
in a quenched and aged alloy, few investigations have dealt with precipitate
structures in this system. ft was found during the present study that only at
the longer times of reaction, where overlap of the diffusion fields of adjacent
precipitates had occurred, did the bee precipitates become sufficiently large
for a detailed investigation by electron microscopy. While the precipitates
studied were in the stage of coarsening rather than of growth, the range of
morphologies observed did not change significantly from those observed
during growth.
2. Experimental

A vacuum melted and cast Cu-0.33% Cr alloy was employed. The alloy
was homogenized for five days at 1000 “C, and preliminary experiments deter-
mined the solvus to be 93077, in good agreement with the equilibrium dia-
gram’s). Specimens of the alloy were rolled to 0.005 inch, sealed in vacua in
 NEARLY COHERENT~CC:~CC
BOUNDARIESIN Cu-Cr 259

quartz capsules, and solution treated at 1000°C for 30 min followed by

isothermal reaction at temperatures between 700 and 900°C for times up to
five days. A two-stage process was employed to prepare foil samples for
transmission electron microscopy. Using the window technique, the speci-
mens were first electro-polished in a 30% solution of HNO, in methyl alcohol.
Thinning was completed with a solution of 18 g of chromium trioxide in
1000 ml of acetic acid. This procedure was adopted since the former solution
preferentially dissolved the Cr-rich precipitates. The foils were examined with
a Philips 200 electron microscope, equipped with a two-axis tilt goniometer
stage.
3. Results

3.1. PRECIPITATE MORPHOLOGY AND INTERFACIAL DISLOCATION STRUCTURE

The precipitates exhibited complex morphologies, often showing more

than one non-parallel planar interface. Some examples of the morphologies
formed are shown in figs. la-Id. Though often it was difficult to identify the
precipitate shape due to the sectioning effect of the foil; the most easily dis-
tinguishable morphology was the lath. After five days at 7OO”C, laths were
ca. 10 urn long and had an aspect ratio of -20: 1 (fig. la). Other regularly
shaped precipitates were also present (figs. lc-1 d), but their largest dimension
rarely exceeded 1 urn.
All of the planar interfaces investigated were found to contain dislocation
arrays, whose geometrical dispositions were found to vary with morphology
(figs. la-Id). In the case of the lath, the major set of dislocations was aligned
longitudinally along the precipitate parallel to (1 IO),,, and (loo),,, with
spacings between 100 and 1000 A. Similar contrast was observed when the
dislocations were imaged using either precipitate or matrix reflections, indi-
cating that their strain fields were shared by both lattices and thus that the
dislocations lay at the interphase boundary (fig. 2). A few dislocations were
observed to lie across the precipitate; however, these dislocations were in
general more widely spaced than those in the main array. Using several ma-
trix reflections, contrast experiments were performed in an effort to charac-
terize the dislocations, but with inconsistent results. Weak or extinct contrast
was occasionally observed with the diffraction vectors that were most nearly
parallel to the dislocation lines, suggesting that they were of edge character.
Even in these cases, however, no other extinctions were found, thus prevent-
ing determination of the Burger’s vector. These difficulties are not unexpected,
since the dislocations were situated between dissimilar crystal structures, the
interface of which was not, in most cases, oriented in a simple manner to
either structure. In this situation even if the dislocations were simple, com-
plex elastic effects associated with the boundary may make characterization
260 M.G. HALL,H. I. AARONSON AND K. R. KINSMAN

Fig. 1. Transmission electron micrographs of Cr-rich bee precipitates, showing mor-

phology and interfacial dislocation structure. (a) Portion of a lath precipitate after 5 days
at 700°C. (b) Idiomorph, 5 days at 700°C. (c) Idiomorph 1OOOmin at 700°C. (d) Lath
precipitate at an early stage of growth, 10 min at 800°C.

using normal methods difficult or even misleading. An additional possibility,

which should not be overlooked, is that of a Burgers vector associated with
the interphase boundary dislocations that is not a lattice vector in either the
precipitate or the matrix; thereby compounding the problem.

3.2. ORIENTATION RELATIONSHIPS

Several morphologies were investigated from this point of view using se-
 NEARLYCOHERENT fcc:bcc BOUNDARIESIN Cu-Cr 261

Fig. 2. Dark field transmission electron micrographs of a portion of a lath precipitate,

showing longitudinal and secondary dislocation arrays (5 days at 700°C). (a) Matrix
reflection, 9 = (1 Ii). (b) Precipitate reflection, ,g = (li0).

lected area diffraction. It was found that in most cases the low index bee and
fee zone axes did not coincide, thus ruling out the existence of a simple orien-
tation relationship. Moreover, no single orientation relationship was found
to hold for all of the precipitates. However, with the exception of one morph-
ology described in the Discussion, it was found that for all of the precipi-
tates, a { 1 lo},,, plane was always parallel to a { 1 I I}fcc plane in the matrix.
The resulting diffraction patterns (showing (1 lO),,,//( 111 )rcc) is illustratedin
fig. 3. It was invariably found that a tilt of less than 1’ from the (111 )rcc zone
resulted in the disappearance of some of the bee diffraction intensities. Fur-
ther evidence of the parallelism of the close-packed planes was the strong
moire pattern often observed to be associated with them (fig. 4). The room
temperature spacings of { 1 IO},, and { I1 l}cU are 2.036 and 2.083 A, respect-
ively. Based on this the expected parallel moire pattern spacing of 90.2 A is
slightly greater than the measured value of 82 A; however, the expansion of
the Cu lattice due to dissolved Cr14) probably accounts for this discrepancy.
Apart from the parallelism of the close-packed planes, a range of orienta-
tions between the extremes of Nishiyama-Wassermanrs$rs) and Kurdjumow-
Sachsl7) was observed. This can be expressed in terms of a rotation through
the angle 0 between the [liO],,, and [OOl],,, directions. When 8=0”, the
Nishiyama-Wasserman relationship obtains; at 0 = 5*“, the relationship is
that of Kurdjumow-Sachs. Values of 0 ranging from 0 to 5” were obtained.
Fig. 3. Orientation relationships of the precipitates. Foil has been tilted to a [lll]rCC
zone axis, showing a superposed [110]1~~~diffraction pattern and irrational orientation
relationship. 0 is the angle between the [liO]rcc and [lOO]bcr directions. If 0 =O”, the
orientation relationship is a Nishiyama-Wasserman; 0 = Sk0 gives
the Kurdjumov-Sachs relationship.
 NEARLY COHERENT fCC: bee BOUNDARIES IN CU-Cr 263

Fig. 4. Dark field transmission electron micrograph, showing moire pattern formed by
the parallel [I 1 l]r,, and [1 Io]bcc diffraction vectors. Moire fringe spacing is 82 A.

Behavior similar to this was reported by Youngls) in his investigation of the

Widmanstatten figures in an Fe-30% Ni meteorite.

3.3. HABIT PLANES

Habit planes were determined by choosing precipitates which exhibited
planar facets nearly perpendicular to the foil surface. The precipitate was
imaged in dark field, using a bee reflection, and then a series of photographs
were taken as the foil was tilted through accurate superposition of the upper
and lower intersections of the precipitate with the foil surface. For a foil
1600 A thick, a displacement of the upper and lower traces of the precipitate
by 50 A corresponds to an angle of 2”; this is probably the limiting accuracy
of the habit planes determined by this technique. Sufficient diffraction data
were also obtained to establish the relative lattice orientations of the pre-
cipitate and matrix crystals to within ++“.*
Using stereographic analysis, the normal to the habit plane was deter-
mined and plotted on a unit stereographic triangle, both relative to the fee
crystal, fig. 5a, and, relative to the bee crystal, in fig. 5b. A summary of the

* A <llO)rcc diffraction pattern was generally first obtained, and by inspection of the
dark field image the variant of (111) rcc was identified which was also parallel to (1 10)bcc.
It was found that by tilting the foil a few degrees about this axis, a low index diffraction
pattern from the precipitate was rapidly produced.
 M. G. HALL, EI. I. AARONSON AND K. R. KINSMAN

lInterface Normals, Experimental Data

A_

l Interface Normals, Experimental Data.

6.7
(b)

tl=oo
BCC

Fig. 5. Unit stereographic triangle showing experimental and theoretical interface

normals with respect to (a) the fee crystal and (b) the bee crystal.
 NEARLY COHERENT fCC: bee BOUNDARIES IN CU-Cr 265

TABLE1
Morphology and orientation relationships

MORPHOLOGY* ORIENTATION .MORPHOLOGY* ORIENTATION

RELATIONSHIP RELATIONSHIP
I. 5.
(Ill), II (110)~
/ f
&I”
0101
6.
(IllIF 11~110), (Ill+ II (IlO),

8=l” (OTIIF II (lTl)g

(III+ IhllO),

8=2” I

orientation relationships and morphologies of these precipitates is shown in

table 1.
In most cases, a number of precipitates of each morphology was investi-
gated. Although the morphologies shown in table 1 are no doubt to some ex-
tent influenced by the sectioning effect of the foil, the outlines were found to
be reproducibly associated with the indicated matrix orientations. Except in
the case of morphology 1, the lath, it was not possible to identify the three-
dimensional shape of the various morphologies.

4. Discussion

4. I. DERIVATION OF A STEPPED STRUCTURE FOR THE PLANAR FACETS

This investigation has disclosed the existence of a number of planar inter-
faces which must surely be nearly coherent since they are arrayed with linear
and rather widely spaced misfit dislocations and yet are clearly irrational, in
some cases lying 1O-20” from { 11 l}rcc. An explanation for this apparently
contradictory set of observations was developed on the basis of figs. 6a and b.
These drawings show the atomic matching obtained by the superposition of
(1llL and { 1lo},,, planes in the Kurdjumow-Sachs orientation relation-
ship as reported by BarrettlO) and in the Nishiyama-Wasserman relationship
as presented by Paxtonll). Both constructions were slightly modified to a
* Outline of precipitate, observed with indicated matrix orientations. The solid and dashed
lines represent the intersections with the upper and lower surfaces of the foil.
266 M.G.HALL,H.I. AARONSON AND K. R. KINSMAN

64

‘.“.o.o.od’d’ 6’4’ 6’ 4’ 4’ (1
~0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0~
w v w uuQQQQQQ~~~O.O.Oc
l
__----mm--

*....od,0mBww.o,c.oDt
------ ---m-----m_

~c,oCr(D~,~~........a,a _---m-ww-m----- _.

.o.Mo.3aabbbbbeebeeJ’,~_
0*0*0*0*0*0*0~~~crt,rb~bbbbcb
P d, ~cCo*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o~
b8uuc9888~*******’ 00000000

Fig. 6. Superposed plots of the atomic configurations in the {l I I& and {I 10)bCr:planes.
(a) ~ishiyama-Wasserman orientation relationship.
(b) Kurdjumov-Sachs orientation relationship.

common lattice parameter ratio, u~~/u~~, of 1.25. It is readily seen that in

both cases, a good fit is not obtained between the two interface planes over
large areas of the interface. More detailed examination discloses, however, a
diamond-shaped region of relatively good fit* in fig. 6a(delineated with dash-
* The atoms in this region are within a displacement of 15 ‘A of the interatomic spacing.
Similar habit plane geometries would be derived, however, using a more stringent con-
dition.
 NEARLYCOHERENT fcc:bcc BOUNDARIESIN Cu-Cr 267

ed lines). In fig. 6b, a region of this type is similarly identified which is elon-
gated and almost parallel to the (1 lo),,, and (11 l)bcc directions. The former
region contains 9 atoms and the latter about 30. In both cases, only about 8%
of the atoms in the bee habit plane can be considered to fit well with their
counterparts in the fee habit plane.
This situation can be markedly improved, if the planar interface is replaced
by a stepped one in which the broad faces of one atom high steps are com-
posed of the regions of good fit. A greater proportion of the interphase boun-
dary will then exhibit reasonably good matching, and any residual mismatch
can now be accommodated by interfacial dislocations.
In order to implement this concept, it is first noted that on any pair of
{lll~fcc and { 1 lo},,, habit planes, the regions of good fit may be considered
to form a kind of two-dimensional “superlattice,” with the dimensions and
shape of the regions comprising the “points” on the “superlattice” varying
with the orientation relationship of the two lattices. Diagrams of the “super-
lattices” thus produced are shown in fig. 7 for 8=0, 2 and 5”. Considering
first only the solid lines in fig. 7a(B = 0’) the diamond shaped figures outline
the regions of good fit. The “superlattice” is seen to have a “face centered
rectangular” unit cell of dimensions 22 x 52 A, as measured from equivalent
positions on adjacent “points”, here of diamond shape. In fig. 7b(8= 2”) the
unit cell is seen to be distorted relative to that of fig. 7a, although the regions
of good fit do not change shape. For 8 = S$“(fig. 7c), the regions of good fit
are elongated, and the unit cell is appreciably larger (36 x 109 A). Only the
two nearest neighboring regions are shown in this case.
If the adjacent atomic layers are considered, the “superlattice” will have

Fig. 7a.
268 M. G.HALL,H. 1. AARONSON AND K. R. KINSMAN

Fig. 7b.

r-----*
:___, ‘L ____-------, \L.-W__ -----...“,
‘L ---_------~
‘L._________\ ‘c__,
\ ,___A

;-----\
I_--- &,--- -------,
\L-___--- __. ‘IL__-------\ \
‘.\---__-_-__, \ L-_-f
‘b____i
Fig. 7~.
Fig. 7. Superlattices of “good fit” formed by 1111) fee, {llO}bCCconjugate planes. The
solid lines outline the regions of “good fit” formed by the {11l}rcc and {110}t,Ccplanes. The
dashed outlines show similar regions in the adjacent atomic planes.

the same shape and dimensions in each plane, but is found to be displaced
horizontally. In the case t?=O, for example, the regions are displaced by
9.0 A, relative to the adjacent planes, in the parallel (1 10)bccr (112),,, direc-
tions, as shown by the dashed outlines in fig. 7a. Since the regions of good fit
will be displaced by the same amount as each successive layer is considered,
the construction is essentially complete by considering only these two layers.
It is readily apparent that the (irrational) plane delineated by the points aabb
has a higher proportion of good fit areas than the planar (1 lO~~~=~~{lll~~~~
 NEARLY COHERENT fCC: bee BOUNDARIES IN CU-Cr 269

interface. Fully 25% of the atoms in the stepped interface constructed in this
manner can now be considered to match acceptably*. Several other inter-
faces, it should be noted, can be constructed with the aid of this figure. How-
ever, no interface, including aa’bb’, can use all the regions of good fit. For
example, if points aa’bb’ are assigned to the interface the remaining superlat-
tice points cc’, dd’, ee’ etc., will be solely in one crystal or the other and will ac-
cordingly “disappear”. The maximum density of “good fit”, however, will be
given by the habit planes which pass through the nearest neighboring regions.
Using the procedure outlined above, the four best stepped interfaces of
good fit were constructed graphically for each value of 8 = 0, 1,2, 3 and 5v.**
It was found that as 13varied, the habit plane normals generated a curve on the
stereogram, as shown in figs. 5a and 5b. Set (i), the solid curve formed by
aa’bb’ in fig. 7a and b, refers to a set of planes in the range 8=0 to 3” which
had a good fitting atom density of 25%. At 8=0”, a habit plane tilted 13”
from { 11 l}rcc, near {335},,,, is predicted, and as 0 is increased to 3”, the habit
plane rotates into the center of the stereographic triangle. The second se-
quence of habit planes (bb’cc’ in figs. 7a and 7b) shown by the dashed curve
(set ii), had a good fitting atom density of 16% and was crystallographically
similar to (i); however, the mean habit plane moved towards the { 11 I}rcc-
{lOO},,, great circle as 0 increased. The remaining two sets of habit planes
(aa’cc’; aa’dd’) were in the vicinity of { 1 10}rcc, -30” from { 11 l}rcc, and had a
density of good fit - 16x.t The coincident superlattice suggested only one
habit plane for 0=5$‘. When expressed in terms of the fee lattice, this was
located near {335},,, as in set (i), f3=0”. The location with respect to the bee
crystal is indicated by the data point (iii) in fig. 5b, along the (1 lo)-(112)
great circle.

4.2. COMPARISON WITH EXPERIMENT

The agreement between the coordinates of the theoretically derived and

the experimentally determined interfaces can be seen to be generally good,
particularly in view of the +2” error range of the experimental data. Morph-
ology 1, the lath, consistently showed a facet within 2” of {335},,,, and a
Nishiyama-Wasserman orientation relationship. Precipitates 4 and 5 formed
facets with normals towards the center of the stereographic triangle, and

* It is important to note that this stepped interface construction is applicable only when
the spacings within the { 11l}r,, and { 110}i,cc planes differ by no more than a few percent.
In the case of Cu-Cr, the difference is small enough (ca. 2.5 %) so that in the construction
of fig. 7a it could be assumed equal to zero.
** For 0 = 4”, the errors in the location of the regions of good fit became large using
graphical methods; these values will therefore not be reported.
t The “good fit” regions in the “superlattice” are N 5 atoms wide, but it is geometrically
possible to use only about f of their width.
270 M. G. HALL.H. I. AARONSON AND K. R. KINSMAN

showed 0 values of 2”, also in good agreement with the theoretical line. The
agreement of theory with the data for precipitates 2 and 3 is less attractive,
but these results are still within 6” of the theory.
The clear anomalies relative to the present theory, however, are morph-
ologies 6 and 7, which showed { 11 l}fcc and {loo},,, interfaces respectively.
Such interfaces contain only -+ of the density of coincident atoms of the
stepped interfaces. These morphologies had an unusually regular appearance,
suggesting that they provide an effective barrier to growth. Widely spaced
growth ledges, ca. 80 A high, were frequently observed at these interfaces, in
accordance with this concept. In both cases, the crystals were oriented so that
the interface contained the parallel (1 lo),,, and (1 1l)bcc directions. In the
case of morphology 6, the orientation relationship was within two degrees of
Kurdjumow-Sachs, and morphology 7 exhibited a new orientation relation-
ship (table I) not previously observed in studies of fcc/bcc systems.
The theoretical interface near (33.5},,, with a Kurdjumow-Sachs orienta-
tion relationship, was not observed in the present experiments. However, the
(previously unexplained) measurements of Hu and Smithlg) and SedrikszO)
appear to confirm its existence as a low energy interface. Hu and Smithlg)
reported a Kurdjumow-Sachs orientation relationship between adjacent c1
and p grains in a well annealed specimen of Cu-30% Zn, and found that the
traces of several planar interfaces were not oriented in a simple manner to the
adjacent crystals. Moreover, a two surface analysis of one of the interfaces
showed it to be close to {335}rcc, in excellent agreement with the present
theory. Using a serial sectioning technique, SedrikseO) investigated the planar
interfaces formed on rods of a-Cu-Zn. Two well defined orientation relation-
ships were reported, within a degree of Nishiyama-Wasserman and Kurd-
jumow-Sachs, respectively, and habit planes clustered near (335) and {I 101
were observed, as the theory predicts.

4.3. THE ROLE OF THE MISFITDISLOCATIONS

In order to understand the probable role of the dislocations at these inter-
faces, it is first necessary to consider the variation of the theoretical habit
planes with the relative lattice parameters of the fee and bee crystals. As an
example, the {335}rcc interface for the Nishiyama orientation relationship
will be considered since the symmetry enables a two dimensional plot of the
atomic planes to be made. The deductions are probably also correct, however,
for the interfaces in the center of the stereogram. Fig. 8a is a {lOO},,,,
(1 lOI,,, section through this interface, and shows the orientations of the
close-packed { 11O}t_, { 11 l}rcc planes, which are perpendicular to the plane
of the diagram. The model is constructed for a relative lattice parameter
ratio afoc/a~c of 1.246, chosen so that the { 11 I}rcc and { 1 lo},,, planes have
 NEARLYCOHERENT fcc:bcc BOUNDARI~IN Cu-Cr 271

a;CC
- '1.246
afjcc

(b) jiiii~iiiziiiiiiiiiiiiii1ii;iii
BCC -%4
Fig. 8. Variation of “{335}eCr” habit plane with the lattice parameter ratio &c/a~bcc, 13=
0”. (a) Equal spacings of {ll l}fcc and {llO} bCCplanes. Habit plane 10” from {lll}rcr.
(b) 10% mismatch between {I 11)tcc and {llO)bfC planes. Habit plane 23” from (1 ll&

equal spacings. The diagram shows the stepped interface, the mean direction
of which is 10” from { 1 I1 )rcc, and it can be seen that by adopting this con-
figuration, each { 11l}fcc plane has a counterpart { 1 lo},,, plane in the ad-
jacent crystal. Since no cumulative mismatch is apparent, there is little reason
to expect that this interface would require the presence of misfit accommodat-
ing dislocations. Considering fig. 8b, which is the same interface for a 10%
mismatch between the (I 11jfcc and fllO),,, planes, a different situation
arises. It can be seen that by an adjustment to the step width, resulting in a
rotation of the habit plane from 10” to 23” from { 111 jfcc, the mismatch that
272 M.G.HALL,H. I. AARONSON AND K.R. KINSMAN

is present in the plane of the faces of the steps is removed. However, because
of the mismatch in the direction perpendicular to this, an extra { 110) plane
in the bee lattice is apparent for every 10 { 1111 planes in the fee. For the case
of Cu-Cr, the mismatch between these planes is 2..50/;, implying an extra
plane in the bee for every 40 { Ill] atomic planes in the fee (87 A). This gives
a dislocation spacing, measured along the interface, of 87/sin 13” = 390 A, in
reasonable agreement with the experimentally measured values of 100 to
1000 A. Irregularities in the dislocation spacings may be due to the usual
nucleation problems that so often hinder the attainment of the equilibrium
structure21,l). It is also significant, that in the case of the laths, the disloca-
tions were observed mainly to form parallel to the length of the precipitate
where mismatch compensation is most needed.

4.4. GROWTH MECHANISM

The stepped structure proposed for the nearly coherent boundaries in the
present alloy brings to mind the ledge structure which develops at the broad
faces of y plates precipitated from a-Al-Ag when only one set of parallel
misfit dislocations is present 22). These ledges not only compensate misfit but
also serve as growth tedges23). This situation is not expected to obtain, how-
ever, in the Cu-Cr system. The steps present in this situation should be wholly
immobile, since their broad faces cannot extend beyond the region in which
near coherency obtains between the two lattices. An “extrinsic” mechanism
must, therefore, be relied upon to generate growth ledges. A current study of
the thickening kinetics of proeutectoid ferrite sideplates appears to support
this concept: the average spacing between growth ledges is orders of mag-
nitude greater than that between the structural stepsg).

5. Conclusions

(1) The interfacial structures on bee Cr-rich precipitates in a Cu-0.3% Cr

alloy have been investigated by transmission electron microscopy, and were
found to exhibit regular arrays of widely spaced misfit dislocations.
(2) The orientation relationships between precipitates and matrix were
found to vary between the extremes of the ~ishiyama-Wasserman and the
Kurdjomow-Sachs relationships. The conjugate habit planes of the planar
facets were often irrational; several were located 10-20” from (11 fjfcc.
(3) “Superlattices” of good-fitting regions at fcc:bcc interfaces were de-
rived. The planes containing the highest proportion of good-fitting atoms were
irrational, located 1O-1 6” from { 111 jFcC. Their most probable atomic struc-
ture is a stepped configuration of {i 1I}fec and { 1 10)bcc planes, with the
regions of good fit occurring across the broad faces of the steps. As the re-
 NEARLY COHERENT fcC: bee BOUNDARIES IN CU-Cr 213

lative parameter is increased,

ratio afOCC/aFC the interfaces of best fit rotate
further from { 11 l}rcc.
(4) The model successfully explains most of the habit planes observed in
this system, as well as some previous observations reported in the Cu-Zn sys-
tem and gives a semi-quantitative accounting for the misfit dislocation struc-
ture.
Acknowledgements

The authors are indebted to Mr. E. T. Kennedy for specimen preparation

and heat treatments, Mr. J. Sprys and the late Mr. L. R. Sefton for assistance
with electron microscopy, and Dr. H. B. Aaron for his useful criticism of the
manuscript.
References

1) H. I. Aaronson, C. Laird and K. R. Kinsman, Phase Transformations (Am. Sot

Metals, Cleveland, Ohio, 1970) p. 313.
2) K. R. Kinsman, H. I. Aaronson and E. Eichen, Met. Trans. 2 (1971) 1041.
3) G. C. Weatherly, Acta Met. 19 (1971) 181.
4) H. E. Cline, J. L. Walter, E. F. Koch and L. M. Osika, Acta Met. 19 (1971) 405.
5) J. L. Walter, H. E. Cline and E. F. Koch, Trans. AIME 245 (1969) 2076.
6) W. A. Jesser and J. W. Mathews, Phil. Mag. 17 (1968) 461.
7) W. A. Jesser and J. W. Mathews, Acta Met. 16 (1968) 35.
8) H. I. Aaronson, Decomposition of Aus?enite by DiffusionalProcesses, Eds. V. F. Zackay
and H. I. Aaronson (Interscience, New York, 1962) p. 462.
9) K. R. Kinsman, E. Eichen and H. I. Aaronson, to be published.
10) R. F. Mehl, C. S. Barrett and D. W. Smith, Trans. AIME 105 (1933) 215.
11) H. Paxton, J. Chem. Phys. 26 (1957) 1769.
12) J. Rezek, Can. Met. Quarterly 8 (1970) 179.
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1953) p. 524.
14) G. Falkenhagen and W. Hofmann, Z. Metallk. 43 (1952) 69.
15) Z. Nishiyama, Sci. Rept. Tokoku Univ. 23 (1934) 638.
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No. 93, 1965) p. 96.
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Discussion

JOHN TIEN (Pratt and Whitney, Middletown, Connecticut) : I am not sure I

understand why these particular misfit accommodating ledges cannot move
laterally and thus also serve as transformation ledges?
M. G. HALL: We do not believe that these steps could serve as transfor-
274 M.G. HALL,H. 1. AARONSON AND K. R. KINSMAN

mation ledges. The steps are partially coherent and are therefore not mobile.
The most probable mechanism of migration is therefore by means of a
“disordered” transformation ledge.
G. C. Weatherly (University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada): In many
similar systems like Cu-Fe and Cu-Co, the first precipitate comes out with
the crystal structure of the parent. This then transforms somehow into the
stable structure. Is something like that possibly happening here?
HALL and KINSMAN: There is one previous investigation of this system by
Rezek. His suggestion that the initial structure of the chromium-rich preci-
pitates was fee was based only on the fact that he could not observe bee dif-
fraction spots. These precipitates remain coherent and presumably fee at
least until they grow to the order of 50 a in diameter. It is our observation
that then the bee precipitates nucleate in the vicinity of, or in association
with, (the details are not clear at this juncture) the initial precipitates, and in a
very short time at the relatively high temperatures used in this investigation
the bee precipitates are all that remain. The precipitates we studied were
coarsened well beyond even that stage so that there is no possibility of a
transitional lattice being involved in our observations.