Growth and three-dimensional analysis of a Nb-Al-Ni ternary eutectic

In this work, the microstructure of an Al3Nb-Nb2Al-AlNbNi ternary eutectic obtained by directional solidification was analyzed. Because the phase arrangement of this eutectic is highly complex, this study involved a three-dimensional reconstruction of the microstructure using the serial sectioning technique. The visualization of the reconstructed microstructure revealed that the fibers possessed a high degree of sinuosity. Although these fibers were continuous in the growth direction, they displayed a tendency to move back and forth across a central axis.