The influence of elastic strain on the shape of particles segregating in an alloy

Abstract

An estimate is given of the way in which the strain energy associated with a particle of precipitate depends upon the shape of the particle. It is shown that the energy can only be reduced if the precipitate forms in flat plates, and then only in the case of particles which have broken away from the lattice of the matrix. This dependence of strain energy on shape causes the precipitate to consist of plates of a shape similar to that observed in Widmanstätten structures.