Abstract. In this work we have studicd the microstructural conditions for the appearance of the P3 relaxation at about 650K in 99.999% Aluminium. The experimental behaviour of the P3 peak allows us to conclude that it is linked to a process of dislocation mobility.
l. INTRODUCTIONThe internal friction (IF) spectra in A1 5N single crystals was studied by Woirgard et al. [1,2] between 300K and 700K and decomposed in a high temperature background plus three relaxation peaks named Pi, P2 and Pg. These relaxations appear also in bicrystals and an annealing at 673K increases the P2 and P3 relaxations. In polycrystals Woirgard et al. [1,2] observe so high the P2 relaxation that the P1 and P3 relaxations are hidden. These results were confirmed by Bonetti et al. [3], who observe in A1 4N single crystals slightly deformed by flexion three relaxations K1, K2 and H that increase with the deformation degree and do not disappear even after annealing at 813K during 12 hours. These relaxations appear also in polycrystals after primary recrystallization, being much more strength than in single crystals [3,4]. On the contrary, KC et al. [S] do not observe any relaxation between 450K and 700K in A1 4N and A1 5N single crystals grown by zone melting. Nevertheless they observe a peak around 640K (named P365) in similar single crystals grown by dynamic annealing [5-71, but this peak disappears after a 5% creep deformation at the temperature of the peak maximum, or after a 5% tensile deformation at room temperature followed by a 2h annealing at 87313 [7]. In the case of polycrystals of A1 4N and AI 5N with bamboo microstructure, these authors observe a relaxation also at 640K when the sample has been deformed 3% and annealed at 830K. This relaxation is dependent on the oscillating amplitude [7] and dissapears by tensile deformation [8]. Using another kind of internal friction measurements, stabilizing the temperature 4 hours before each measurement, Rivi2re et a1 [9-1 l] observe three relaxations PI, P2 and P3 that are amplitude independent and besides P2 and P3 do not disappear even after annealing at 800K.A comparative and exhaustive study of the relaxations observed in the literature in A16N, AlSN and A14N at medium and high temperatures has been acomplished by N6 [12]. This study allows her to conclude that the high temperature component of the KC peak, as well as the P365, P3 and H peaks are the same relaxation, that in the present work will be named as P3 peak.The aim of this work is to contribute with some suplementary results about the P3 peak in order to understand its behaviour and to clarify the microscopic mechanism responsible for this relaxation.
EXPERIMENTAL CONDITIONSIn the present work we used 99.999% Aluminium (5N) "super raffinal" AIAG. The 5N A1 supplied in l0mm plates was rolled until it was l.lmm thick and annealed under primary vacuum for l h at 500K in order to recrystallize the samples, that were subsequently aged for a long time at room temperature. In this condition the samples show a mixed microstructure ...