Precise comparison of theory and new experiment for the Casimir force leads to stronger constraints on thermal quantum effects and long-range interactions

Shape-memory alloys (SMAs) are a unique class of metal alloys that after a large deformation can, on heating, recover their original shape. In the many practical applications of SMAs, the most commonly used material is NiTi (nitinol). A full atomic-level understanding of the shape-memory effect in NiTi is still lacking, a problem particularly relevant to ongoing work on scaling down shape-memory devices for use in micro-electromechanical systems. Here we present a first-principles density functional study of the structural energetics of NiTi. Surprisingly, we find that the reported B19' structure of NiTi is unstable relative to a base-centred orthorhombic structure that cannot store shape memory at the atomic level. However, the reported structure is stabilized by a wide range of applied or residual internal stresses. We propose that the memory is stored primarily at the micro-structural level: this eliminates the need for two separate mechanisms in describing the two-way shape-memory effect.

Crystal structures and shape-memory behaviour of NiTi.

Whilst it has long been known that disorder profoundly affects transport properties, recent measurements on a series of solid solution 3d-transition metal alloys reveal two orders of magnitude variations in the residual resistivity. Using ab initio methods, we demonstrate that, while the carrier density of all alloys is as high as in normal metals, the electron mean-free-path can vary from ~10 A (strong scattering limit) to ~103 A (weak scattering limit). Here, we delineate the underlying electron scattering mechanisms responsible for this disparate behavior. While site-diagonal, spin dependent, potential scattering is always dominant, for alloys containing only Fe, Co, and Ni the majority-spin channel experiences negligible disorder scattering, thereby providing a short circuit, while for Cr/Mn containing alloys both spin channels experience strong disorder scattering due to an electron filling effect. Somewhat surprisingly, other scattering mechanisms—including displacement, or size effect, scattering which has been shown to strongly correlate with such diverse properties as yield strength—are found to be relatively weak in most cases. Smearing of Fermi surfaces caused by specific alloying elements in high-entropy alloys explains disparate resistivity measurements. A team led by George Malcom Stocks at Oak Ridge National Laboratories in Tennessee, USA, used ab initio methods to investigate electron scattering mechanisms behind differences in residual resistivity of the Cantor-Wu family of face-centered cubic disordered alloys. The simulations first reproduced the experimental observation that alloys containing manganese and chromium had high residual resistivities, while all other Cantor-Wu alloys had low residual resistivities. Single-site electron scattering, in combination with scattering caused by magnetism, showed that this was due to manganese and chromium causing smearing of the Fermi surfaces due to their half-filled d-bands. Better understanding of electronic transport in disordered alloys may help elucidate their more exotic properties.

/pdf/uncovering-electron-scattering-mechanisms-in-nifecocrmn-1tvk6xkzxq.pdf

Uncovering electron scattering mechanisms in NiFeCoCrMn derived concentrated solid solution and high entropy alloys

Characterization of plasmonic effects in thin films and metamaterials using spectroscopic ellipsometry

Whilst it has long been known that disorder profoundly affects transport properties, recent measurements on a series of solid solution 3d-transition metal alloys reveal two orders of magnitude variations in the residual resistivity. Using ab-initio methods, we demonstrate that, while the carrier density of all alloys is as high as in normal metals, the electron mean-free-path can vary from ~10 A (strong scattering limit) to ~10$^3$ A (weak scattering limit). Here, we delineate the underlying electron scattering mechanisms responsible for this disparate behavior. While spin dependent site-diagonal disorder is always dominant, for alloys containing only Fe, Co, and Ni the majority spin channel experiences negligible disorder scattering, thereby providing a short circuit, while for Cr/Mn containing alloys both spin channels experience strong disorder scattering due to an electron filling effect. Unexpectedly, other scattering mechanisms (e.g. displacement scattering) are found to be relatively weak in most cases.

/pdf/uncovering-electron-scattering-mechanisms-in-nifecocrmn-4pnyluace4.pdf

FROM the point of view of the electron theory, a metal is any solid which is a good conductor of electricity. In attempting to survey roughly the present position of the electron theory of metals, I cannot guarantee that what I say will be everywhere up-to-date, but I shall be satisfied if I can indicate the standing of the theory, as re-established by quantum mechanics.

The Electron Theory of Metals

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The Electron Theory of Metals