VACANCY-SOLUTE INTERACTIONS IN METALS

This review includes the experimental techniques for the determination and theoretical calculations of vacancy-solute interactions. As an introduction, phenomenological treatments are presented. Thermal equilibrium concentrations of vacancy-solute pairs, apparent formation energies of a vacancy and formation of vacancy-solute atom pairs during quenching and aging are discussed. The experimental techniques included are thermal equilibrium techniques by the simultaneous measurement of length and lattice parameter changes and by positron annihilation, impurity diffusion at high temperatures, quenching experiments and aging processes. The theoretical calculations of the binding energies between a vacancy and a solute atom are critically reviewed. Elastic method, the pseudopotential method, and the screening potential method are included. Proposed semi-empirical rules are also reviewed. © 1978.