Lamellar spacing selection in a directionally solidified SnSe eutectic alloy

Abstract

According to the classical eutectic growth theory, eutectic solidification occurs near the minimum liquid undercooling at the solid/liquid interface. Application of such a condition on eutectic solidification leads to the conclusion that the lamellar spacing is not unique for a specific growth condition. Although the average lamellar spacing as a function of the growth rate agrees with the theory, in the growth of the SnSe eutectic alloy, it was found that the lamellar spacings are distributed over a large range of values. The main objective of this paper is to investigate the influence of the growth rate on the lamellar spacing selection of the SnSe eutectic alloy. The results obtained show that the growth rate affects the distribution of lamellar spacings. It was noted that an increase in the growth rate causes a narrower distribution of spacings.