Abstract
It is shown that Cahn's theory of spinodal decomposition can be directly tested by means of diffraction methods. Small-angle scattering of X-rays is the most suitable method for studying the initial stages of decomposition. A detailed study of the kinetics of the spinodal process in some glasses of the B 2O 3PbOAl 2O 3 system is reported; it shows that in the initial stages Cahn's linearized theory is approximately obeyed. Values of interdiffusion coefficient, activation energy, etc., were obtained. In later stages an Ostwald type coarsening mechanism is seen to intervene. Electron microscopy was also used to follow the spinodal process, a quantitative evaluation of micrographs being made by an original optical transform method. This and the use of spatial (correlation) filtering techniques open up new possibilities for the interpretation of complex textures. The concept of the spinodal in vitreous systems is discussed. A transition from the coherent to incoherent spinodal seems to take place in the transformation range.
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