Structural evolution of the amorphous grain boundary phase during nanocrystallisation of Fe72CU1Nb4.5Si13.5B9

The structure of the amorphous grain boundary phase during progressive stages of nanocrystallisation in the Fe72Cu1Nb4.5Si13.5B9 alloy has been followed using XRD, SAXS and Mossbauer spectroscopy. The initial compositional inhomogeneity sets-in with increasing crystallisation, as a result of the depletion in Fe of the amorphous phase, which partly homogenises for longer annealing times due to long-range diffusion. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.