A method of discrimination between stress-assisted and strain-induced martensitic transformation using atomic force microscopy

A method of discrimination between stress-assisted and strain-induced martensitic transformation (MT) using atomic force microscopy is established. The shear angles of the three kinds of face-centered cubic to body-centered tetragonal MT in an Fe–0.1C–1.7Mn–1.2Si transformation-induced plasticity steel are calculated based on our developed method. Comparing the theoretical shear angle with the practical shear angle, the features of three kinds of MT, including stress-assisted, strain-induced and thermal-induced MTs, are revealed.