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Journal Reference
Acta Materialia, Volume 61, Issue 16, September 2013, Pages 6107-6113
Ann-Kathrin Maier, Iva Tkalcec, Daniele Mari, Robert Schaller.
Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Institute of Condensed Matter Physics, Station 3, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
Abstract
A point defect relaxation peak has been observed in a ternary 18-carat gold alloy with the composition Au62.5Pd32.5In5. It shows a Curie–Weiss dependence on the temperature, as is commonly observed for a Zener peak. However, the peak is absent in the binary alloys AuPd and AuIn and therefore it is a new type of relaxation that is due to In–Pd pairs. The relaxation strength shows a linear dependence on the indium concentration. We have developed a model of elastic dipoles containing one palladium and one indium atom in a gold matrix. The model is based on the reorientation under stress of InPd dipoles in a gold matrix and takes into account the atom ordering. The model accounts for a linear dependence of the relaxation strength on the indium concentration in a dilute alloy and is also valid for more concentrated alloys.
