Study of Local Atomic Order in a Ternary Cu_0.47Ni_0.29Zn_0.24Alloy Using Anomalous Scattering of Synchrotron Radiation

Abstract

This paper describes the results of the first application of anomalous scattering phenomenon to reveal the local atomic arrangements in multi-component systems. Diffuse scattering from a single crystal of the title alloy has been measured using monochromated synchrotron radiation of the various wavelengths in the close vicinity of the K absorption edges of the constituent elements. From the variation of contrast produced in the total diffuse intensity, partial diffuse intensities corresponding to the three kinds of interatomic correlation have been derived by adopting a least-squares fitting method. It is shown that short-range ordering occurs between Ni and Zn atoms and also between Zn and Cu atoms, while a correlation of the opposite sense exists between Cu and Ni atoms. This type of short-range ordering is consistent with the prediction of ordering energies given by De Rooy et at .