Structure modification of rapidly solidified Al–11 wt% Si alloy by the addition of 2 wt% Fe

An investigation of the structure formation of as-cast Al–11 wt% Si (AlSi11) and Al–11 wt% Si–2 wt% Fe (AlSi11Fe2) rapidly solidified (RS) ribbons is performed. Ribbon samples are examined in detail using Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). A nanoscale thickness layer of Si-precipitations, at both Al-grains boundary and oxide/Al-matrix interface, is found to be characteristic for “pure” AlSi11 ribbons. For Fe-doped ribbons, this layer comprises Fe-containing phase also, which appears to possess amorphous nature and is situated between the Si-grains and Al-matrix. A possible mechanism of altering the thermally activated volume diffusion of elements, due to the effect of Fe on the structure modification, is speculated based on the obtained results.