A Review of Recent Research on Nanoindentation of High-Entropy Alloys Processed by High-Pressure Torsion

Abstract

High entropy alloys (HEAs) are a novel class of materials that have emerged as potential candidates for various industrial applications due to their excellent mechanical properties at cryogenic, ambient, elevated temperatures, and even under a hydrogen environment. The incorporation of nanocrystalline (nc) structure into HEAs has attracted significant attention for the further enhancement of their exceptional properties, as exceptional grain refinement usually results in enhanced strength without a large expense of ductility. High-pressure torsion (HPT) is often considered one of the most efficient methods for nanocrystallization, and this also holds true for HEAs. Recently, nanoindentation technique has been widely utilized to explore the relationship between HPT-induced grain refinement and mechanical behavior due to the inhomogeneous microstructure within the HPT disk. In this report, recent nanoindentation studies performed on HPT-processed HEAs are comprehensively reviewed with special emphasis on the nanomechanical behavior of nc HEAs.

Severe Plastic Deformation of Light Metals (Magnesium, Aluminum and Titanium) and Alloys by High-Pressure Torsion: Review of Fundamentals and Mechanical/Functional Properties

“…13,14) Such materials are sometimes referred to as superfunctional materials due to their superior properties. 15,16) For the most recent progress in the field of SPD, the readers are referred to a 2023 special issue of Materials Transactions, 17) which covered various aspects like processing methods, [18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26] structural/microstructural features, [27][28][29][30][31][32][33] mechanical/functional properties, nanostructured metallic and non-metallic materials [56][57][58][59][60][61][62][63][64][65][66][67][68] and heterostructured materials. [69][70][71][72] Among various SPD methods, ECAP and ARB have the potential for commercialization.…”