Interfacial energies in low melting point metals

Abstract

The solid-liquid and solid-solid interfacial energies of seven low melting point metals were determined by measuring at several different temperatures the dihedral angles formed in alloys in which the metal was the primary phase and a second phase (liquid or solid) was present as small inclusions at the grain boundaries. This gave a ratio of energies. Using selected values of the interfacial energies from the literature as reference values, the energies at the melting point were found to have the following values: the solid-liquid interfacial energies σ S−L were 83 mN m −1, 87 mN m −1, 76 mN m −1, 124 mN m −1, 84 mN m −1, 67 mN m −1 and 123 mN m −1 and the solid-solid interfacial energies σ S−S were 164 mN m −1, 171 mN m −1, 150 mN m −1, 243 mN m −1, 161 mN m −1, 131 mN m −1 and 225 mN m −1 for bismuth, cadmium, lead, antimony, tin, thallium and zinc respectively. In addition, the solid-solid interfacial energies between two phases were determined at their eutectic temperatures. Some of the data obtained in this work strongly support one-way nucleation.