Articles tagged with Grain Boundaries
Researchers at Saarland University developed metallic glasses to reduce energy losses in electric motors, enabling more efficient operation. The new alloys minimize energy consumption in everyday devices, extending the range of e-scooters and drones.
Researchers studied mechanical properties of solids as a function of grain size and boundary thickness, revealing that thick boundaries improve strength and ductility in single-component face-centered cubic materials. However, for other materials, increasing boundary thickness softens the material due to dislocation-dominated plasticity.
Researchers developed a Cu-Ta-Li alloy with exceptional thermal stability and mechanical strength, combining copper's conductivity with nickel-based superalloy-like properties. The alloy's nanostructure prevents grain growth, improving high-temperature performance and durability under extreme conditions.
Researchers created a strong and tough CoNiCr alloy by overcoming intermediate temperature brittleness using grain boundary engineering. The alloy's fracture mode changed from intergranular to ductile fracture, increasing elongation to fracture from 1% to ~10%.
Scientists at The University of Tokyo successfully observe the existence of space charge layers in solid electrolyte fuel cells, shedding light on their impact on ion conduction. By controlling grain boundary structure, they can eliminate these layers and improve material performance.
Researchers discovered five distinct grain boundary structures composed of different arrangements of icosahedral cage units, enabling dense packing of iron atoms. The formation of these quasicrystalline-like phases can be used to tailor material behavior and make materials more resilient against degradation processes.
A team from Osaka University used electron microscopy and computer simulations to study the kinetics of microstructure formation in Fe3Al, leading to a deeper understanding of its superelastic properties. The findings could provide insights for heat treatments and applications in construction and healthcare industries.
Researchers develop new method to fabricate anti-fatigue 3D-printed titanium alloy by regulating microstructure and defects, showing remarkably high fatigue resistance and specific strength. The study reveals potential advantages of 3D printing technology in producing structural components.
A study published in Nature Communications reveals unusual patterns of small and large particles in a model liquid, which can affect the formation of ideal glass. The findings raise doubts about whether this model liquid can be considered an ideal glass-forming liquid.
Researchers at Purdue University have developed a new steel alloy with extraordinary strength and plasticity, achieving a yield strength of about 700 megapascals. The treatment produced ultra-fine metal grains that exhibit super-plasticity, allowing the material to stretch and bend without rupturing.
A team of scientists created a mathematical model that accurately describes microstructures by integrating data from highly magnified images taken during experiments. The findings provide insight into how microstructures change at high temperatures and have implications for the development of new materials.
Scientists at Tokyo University of Science created a fracture-resistant alloy through heat-treatment, exhibiting improved elastocaloric properties and resistance to cyclical loads. The Cu-Zn-Al alloy showed significant increases in grain size, leading to enhanced cooling capabilities and paving the way for innovative refrigeration systems.
Lithium dendrites grow in solid-state batteries after charging and discharging cycles, leading to internal short circuits. Researchers have investigated the starting point of this process using microscopy methods, finding that grain boundaries play a crucial role.
A team led by Xueyan Song at West Virginia University has created an oxide ceramic material that solves a longstanding efficiency problem plaguing thermoelectric generators. The breakthrough achieved record-high performance, opening up new research directions to further increase performance and enabling large-scale waste heat recovery.
Researchers developed an isothermal chemical vapor transport (ICVT) method for growing high-quality monocrystals without temperature gradients. This technique simplifies the growth process and produces crystals with excellent crystallographic quality.
Scientists have created new photoelectrode materials with improved performance by rapidly heating metal-oxide thin films to high temperatures without damaging the underlying glass substrate. This breakthrough increases the efficiency of solar water splitting and has potential applications for producing 'green' hydrogen and quantum dots.
Scientists at Georgia Institute of Technology observe unprecedented atomic processes that dictate mechanical behavior in metals. They develop novel methods to visualize grain boundary sliding, revealing previously unknown movements and accommodating transferred atoms through adjusting grain boundary structures.
Scientists have simulated the growth of ultra-thin polycrystalline diamond films with promising results. The two-dimensional simulations revealed interesting geometric structures and shed light on how to create robust materials. The research has implications for biomedical science, quantum devices, and other applications.
Researchers developed a new method to predict stress at atomic scale using machine learning, enabling accurate predictions of grain boundary stresses in actual metal specimens. This breakthrough advances the field of mechanics of materials and enables scientists to engineer stronger and more heat-resistant metals.
Researchers have found that a conventional model for predicting material microstructure does not apply to polycrystalline materials. They used near-field high energy diffraction microscopy (HEDM) to study grain boundaries, revealing that the model's predictions are inconsistent with experimental data.
Scientists discovered structural and surface chemistry defects in superconducting niobium qubits that may cause loss. The study pinpointed these defects using state-of-the-art characterization capabilities at the Center for Functional Nanomaterials and National Synchrotron Light Source II.
Lehigh University researchers are developing a model to understand the impact of grain growth on material properties. The project aims to create new materials informatics methods, innovative stochastic differential equations, and models of grain growth to improve material performance and reliability.
A new coating technology has been developed to stabilize Ni-rich cathodes in lithium-ion batteries, improving cycling stability and capacity retention. The technique involves infusing a cobalt boride metallic glass into the grain boundaries of the cathode material, resulting in improved electrochemical performance and safety.
Researchers investigate coupling between mechanical stresses and grain boundaries in nanograined materials. Novel thermodynamic criterion quantifies stress impact on thermal stability; stresses play a vital role, unlike previous studies which ignored internal stresses.
Advanced metal alloys are crucial in modern life, but creating new ones with specific properties has been limited by researchers' understanding of grain boundary behavior. A team at MIT used computer simulations and machine learning to predict alloy properties, showing that many previously ruled-out combinations are feasible.
Scientists at UNSW have created a method to produce high-quality two-dimensional MoS2 semiconductors without grain boundaries. By using gallium metal in its liquid state, researchers were able to form the desired MoS2 material on an atomically smooth surface, paving the way for ultra-low energy electronics with fast switching speeds.
Researchers at Rice University found that electricity generated by temperature differences in gold nanowires is not affected by grain boundaries, contrary to previous assumptions. This discovery could enable the detection of crystalline defects using a novel optical detection system.
Researchers have discovered a way to resolve the conflict between high strength and ductility in intermetallic alloys by introducing disordered nanoscale layers at grain boundaries. These nanolayers improve the alloy's strength with excellent thermal stability at high temperatures, opening up new possibilities for designing structural ...
Researchers at North Carolina State University developed a computational model that understands how material nanostructure affects conductivity. The goal is to inform the development of new energy storage devices for various electronics.
Researchers from Argonne National Laboratory and Northwestern University used electron holography and atom probe tomography to study grain boundaries in a solid electrolyte material. They found that impurities such as silicon and aluminum caused resistance, which can be mitigated by intentionally inserting elements into the material.
Researchers at Peking University and Chinese Academy of Sciences discover atomic mechanism of spin-valve magnetoresistance at asymmetry SrRuO3 grain boundary. The study reveals a new strategy to create 2D magnetic order in grain boundaries, which can dominate response in nanoscale devices.
Researchers used X-ray free-electron lasers to study the structural changes in polycrystalline gold thin films during laser-induced melting. The findings suggest that melting occurs preferentially at grain boundaries, resulting in a non-uniform process.
Scientists have discovered that ultra-strong metals can be created by reducing grain size to below 10 nanometers, contrary to previous assumptions. The study found that high pressure overcomes grain sliding effects, leading to extreme strengthening in finely grained samples.
Sangyeop Lee, a Pitt engineer, has received a $500K NSF CAREER Award to develop machine learning models that predict material conductive properties. The project aims to create more efficient heat management in electronic devices and energy storage systems.
A team of engineers found that certain defects in lead-halide perovskite semiconductors can improve their performance, increasing efficiency and stability. The discoveries could pave the way for the development of more efficient and environmentally friendly solar cells and LEDs.
A Texas A&M team has developed a new method to analyze metal failures, identifying 10 microscopic structures that can strengthen metals and reduce susceptibility to hydrogen embrittlement. This breakthrough could have a huge economic impact by enabling engineers to design stronger metals.
Researchers at the University of California, San Diego, have found that competition between interfacial ordering and disordering leads to brittle fractures at grain boundaries. They also discovered bipolar interfacial structures cause brittle intergranular fractures in sulfur-doped nickel.
Researchers Arvind Kalidindi and Christopher A. Schuh developed a Monte Carlo-based simulation to determine the minimum free energy state of nanocrystalline alloys. They produced equilibrium phase diagrams for these alloys, shedding light on grain size changes with temperature.
Researchers have devised a general method to control grain boundaries in 2D materials, leading to enhanced electrical conductivity, mechanical properties, and magnetism. The innovative approach utilizes Gaussian curvature on the substrate to predetermine grain boundary locations and line them up in orderly positions.
Researchers found superstructures at general grain boundaries that affect the performance of polycrystalline engineering alloys. The discovery could enable the engineering of alloyed materials with superior properties and greater ductility and strength.
At randomly selected high-angle general grain boundaries in a nickel-bismuth polycrystalline alloy, researchers found that interfacial reconstruction can form ordered superstructures. These segregation-induced superstructures enrich theories and fundamental understandings of grain boundary segregation and liquid metal embrittlement.
Rice University researchers have developed a method to control defects in 2-D materials, which can enhance their electronic, magnetic and optical properties. By growing atomic-thin sheets on curved substrates, they can manipulate the appearance of grain boundaries, which are critical in determining material behavior.
A BYU research team has developed a machine learning approach to analyze grain boundaries in metals, enabling the prediction of material strength and corrosion resistance. By analyzing massive data sets, their algorithm provides insight into physical structures associated with specific mechanisms and properties.
Researchers developed a new X-ray technique to examine deformations and dislocations in nanoparticles, which affect their properties. The technique, called Bragg coherent diffraction imaging, allows scientists to reconstruct the size and shape of grain defects in three dimensions.
Scientists have created a model to analyze irregular atomic structures at grain boundaries, where two materials meet. The Polyhedral Unit Model identifies patterns of atomic shapes and can help determine how these structures affect material properties.
Researchers have identified a correlation between grain boundary misorientation angle and electrical transport properties in monolayer molybdenum disulfide. Increasing the merging angle of grain boundaries drastically improves electron flow, resulting in higher carrier mobility.
A team of researchers solved the long-standing issue of how grain boundaries affect heat conductivity in graphene thin films. They devised a technique to measure heat transfer across single grain boundaries, finding it was 10 times lower than theoretically predicted values.
Researchers at the University of South Carolina and Clemson University have discovered a way to improve the transport of oxygen ions in batteries and fuel cells. This breakthrough could lead to faster and more efficient energy conversion devices with significantly enhanced performance, increasing energy efficiency.
A team of Northwestern researchers has made a breakthrough in memristor technology, creating a three-terminal device that can be widely tunable. This innovation brings us closer to brain-like computing, which could revolutionize the way we process information.
Los Alamos researchers uncovered how materials develop defects during irradiation, revealing key factors that affect their properties. The studies shed light on defect mobility, grain boundary structure, and interface-sink efficiency, which are crucial for predicting material behavior under extreme environments.
New research suggests that sinuous grain boundaries in graphene can relieve stress, resulting in enhanced mechanical strength and predictable electronic transport gaps. This discovery may lead to the development of polycrystalline graphene with precise misalignment of components, enabling the control of semiconducting characteristics.
Researchers discovered a way to boost sensitivity of graphene-based sensors by exploiting the unique electronic properties of grain boundaries. By analyzing these imperfections, scientists created an 'electronic nose' that can detect single gas molecules, revolutionizing chemical sensing applications.
Researchers propose that internal physical stresses generated during growth limit lateral size, but a specific phyllotactic pattern may control growth. A study suggests the distribution of grain boundaries in this pattern might be determinant for controlling lateral growth.
Researchers have discovered that chlorine atoms replace tellurium atoms within grain boundaries, creating local electric fields that boost photovoltaic performance. This finding could guide engineering of higher-efficiency CdTe solar cells.
A new method to tune topological insulators has been found, enhancing surface conduction by applying stress at grain boundaries. This discovery could lead to the development of ultra-energy efficient electronics.
University of Houston researchers have developed a new stretchable and transparent electrical conductor that could bring bendable cell phones and foldable flat-screen TVs closer to reality. The gold nanomesh electrodes demonstrate good electrical conductivity, transparency, and flexibility, with potential applications for biomedical de...
Researchers at UT Austin have grown centimeter-size single graphene crystals on copper using surface oxygen, increasing crystal size by 10,000 times. The crystals exhibit exceptional electrical properties, including high carrier mobility, which is crucial for electronic devices.
Researchers at Rice University discovered that imperfections in two-dimensional materials can create nanoscale magnetic fields. The study suggests a new degree of freedom for electronics, allowing for enhanced efficiency and enriched functions.
A recent study by Columbia University researchers reveals that graphene can achieve almost the same strength as its perfect crystalline form, even with defects. The team developed a new process that prevents damage during transfer, leading to surprisingly strong results.
Researchers found that the seven-atom ring defects at junctions in polycrystalline graphene result in reduced strength due to amplification of tension. This finding is significant for materials scientists using graphene, particularly in composite materials and stretchable electronics.