Low temperature precipitation kinetics of niobium nitride platelets in Fe

Single plane platelets of niobium nitride have been observed to form in a Fe–Nb–N alloy during ageing at 600 °C, using High Resolution Electron Microscopy, Field Ion Microscopy and Atom Probe Tomography. Small-angle neutron scattering has been used to investigate the kinetics of formation of these platelets. They are shown to nucleate in less than 5 min at this ageing temperature, and subsequently to grow in-plane to a size of about 10 nm without experiencing any change in thickness.