The energetics and length scales associated with the interaction between point defects (vacancies and self-interstitial atoms) and grain boundaries in BCC Fe was explored. Molecular statics simulations were used to generate a grain boundary structure database that contained ≈ 170 grain boundaries with varying tilt and twist character. Then, vacancy and self-interstitial atom formation energies were calculated at all potential grain boundary sites within 15Å of the boundary. The present results provide detailed information about the interaction energies of vacancies and selfinterstitial atoms with symmetric tilt grain boundaries in iron and the length scales involved with absorption of these point defects by grain boundaries. Both low and high angle grain boundaries were effective sinks for point defects, with a few low-Σ grain boundaries (e.g., the Σ3{112} twin boundary) that have properties different from the rest. The formation energies depend on both the local atomic structure and the distance from the boundary center. Additionally, the effect of grain boundary energy, disorientation angle, and Σ-designation on the boundary sink strength was explored; the strongest correlation occurred between the grain boundary energy and the mean point defect formation energies. Based on point defect binding energies, interstitials have ≈ 80% more grain boundary sites per area and ≈ 300% greater site strength than vacancies. Last, the absorption length scale of point defects by grain boundaries is over a full lattice unit larger for interstitials than for vacancies (mean of 6-7Å vs. 10-11Å for vacancies and interstitials, respectively).

Room-temperature liquid metals (LMs) are attractive candidates for thermal interface materials (TIMs) because of their moderately high thermal conductivity and liquid nature, which allow them to conform well to mating surfaces with little thermal resistance. However, gallium-based LMs may be of concern due to the gallium-driven degradation of many metal microelectronic components. We present a three-component composite with LM, copper (Cu) microparticles, and a polymer matrix, as a cheaper, noncorrosive solution. The solid copper particles alloy with the gallium in the LM, in situ and at room temperature, immobilizing the LM and eliminating any corrosion issues of nearby components. Investigation of the structure-property-process relationship of the three-component composites reveals that the method and degree of additive blending dramatically alter the resulting thermal transport properties. In particular, microdispersion of any combination of the LM and Cu additives results in a large number of interfaces and a thermal conductivity below 2 W m K. In contrast, a shorter blending procedure of premixed LM and Cu particle colloid into the polymer matrix yields a composite with polydispersed filler and effective intrinsic thermal conductivities of up to 17 W m K (effective thermal conductivity of up to 10 W m K). The LM-Cu colloid alloying into CuGa provides a limited, but practical, time frame to cast the uncured composite into the desired shape, space, or void before the composite stiffens and cures with permanent characteristics.

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Nanocrystalline metals, with a mean grain size of less than 100 nanometres, have greater room-temperature strength than their coarse-grained equivalents, in part owing to a large reduction in grain size. However, this high strength generally comes with substantial losses in other mechanical properties, such as creep resistance, which limits their practical utility; for example, creep rates in nanocrystalline copper are about four orders of magnitude higher than those in typical coarse-grained copper. The degradation of creep resistance in nanocrystalline materials is in part due to an increase in the volume fraction of grain boundaries, which lack long-range crystalline order and lead to processes such as diffusional creep, sliding and rotation. Here we show that nanocrystalline copper-tantalum alloys possess an unprecedented combination of properties: high strength combined with extremely high-temperature creep resistance, while maintaining mechanical and thermal stability. Precursory work on this family of immiscible alloys has previously highlighted their thermo-mechanical stability and strength, which has motivated their study under more extreme conditions, such as creep. We find a steady-state creep rate of less than 10(-6) per second-six to eight orders of magnitude lower than most nanocrystalline metals-at various temperatures between 0.5 and 0.64 times the melting temperature of the matrix (1,356 kelvin) under an applied stress ranging from 0.85 per cent to 1.2 per cent of the shear modulus. The unusual combination of properties in our nanocrystalline alloy is achieved via a processing route that creates distinct nanoclusters of atoms that pin grain boundaries within the alloy. This pinning improves the kinetic stability of the grains by increasing the energy barrier for grain-boundary sliding and rotation and by inhibiting grain coarsening, under extremely long-term creep conditions. Our processing approach should enable the development of microstructurally stable structural alloys with high strength and creep resistance for various high-temperature applications, including in the aerospace, naval, civilian infrastructure and energy sectors.

The macroscopic behavior of polycrystalline materials is influenced by the local variation of properties caused by the presence of impurities and defects. The effect of these impurities at the atomic scale can either embrittle or strengthen grain boundaries within. Thus, it is imperative to understand the energetics associated with segregation to design materials with desirable properties. Here, molecular statics simulations were employed to analyze the energetics associated with the segregation of various elements (helium, hydrogen, carbon, phosphorous, and vanadium) to four <100> (5 and 13 GBs) and six <110> (3,9,and11 GBs) symmetric tilt grain boundaries in alpha-Fe. This knowledge is important for designing stable interfaces in harsh environments. Simulation results show that the local atomic arrangements within the GB region and the resulting structural units have a significant influence on the magnitude of binding energies of the impurity (interstitial and substitutional) atoms. This data also suggests that the site-to-site variation of energies within a boundary is substantial. Comparing the binding energies of all ten boundaries shows that the 3(112) boundary possesses a much smaller binding energy for all interstitial and substitutional impurity atoms among the boundaries examined here. Additionally, based on the Rice-Wang model, our total energy calculations show that V has a significant beneficial effect on the Fe grain boundary cohesion, while P has a detrimental effect on grain boundary cohesion, much weaker than H and He. This is significant for applications where extreme environmental damage generates lattice defects and grain boundaries act as sinks for both interstitial and substitutional impurity atoms. This methodology provides us with a tool to effectively identify the local as well as the global segregation behavior which can influence the GB cohesion.

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1The formation/binding energetics and length scales associated with the interaction between He atoms and grain boundaries in BCC α-Fe was explored. Ten different low Σ grain boundaries from the 100 and 110 symmetric tilt grain boundary systems were used. In this work, we then calculated formation/binding energies for 1-2 He atoms in the substitutional and interstitial sites (HeV, He 2 V, HeInt, He 2 Int) at all potential grain boundary sites within 15Å of the boundary (52826 simulations total).The present results provide detailed information about the interaction energies and length scales of 1-2 He atoms with grain boundaries for the structures examined. A number of interesting new findings emerge from the present study. For instance, the Σ3(112) twin boundary in BCC Fe possesses a much smaller binding energy than other boundaries, which corresponds in long time dynamics simulations to the ability of an interstitial He defect to break away from the boundary in simulations on the order of nanoseconds. Additionally, positive correlations between the calculated formation/binding energies of the He defects (R > 0.9) asserts that the local environment surrounding each site strongly influences the He defect energies and that highly accurate quantum mechanics calculations of lower order defects may be an adequate predictor of higher order defects. Various metrics to quantify or classify the local environment were compared with the He defect binding energies. The present work shows that the binding and formation energies for He defects are important for understanding the physics of He diffusion and trapping by grain boundaries, which can be important for modeling He interactions in polycrystalline steels.