Abstract
Whisker/matrix interfaces between β-SiC whiskers and β-Si3N4 or α-Al2O3 matrices in composites were examined by high-resolution electron microscopy (HREM), and electron energy loss (ELS) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDS) spectroscopies. Most whisker/matrix interfaces were crystalline, with whiskers directly bonded to matrix crystals. Some whisker/matrix interface regions contained amorphous thin films and these occurred more often in the Si3N4 composite, which contained sintering additives, than in the Al2O3 matrix composite, which did not. No evidence for light element segregation at crystalline whisker/matrix interfaces was detected by ELS or EDS at 5 nm spatial resolution. Impurities were concentrated in glassy regions in matrix grain boundaries, triple junctions, or at infrequent whisker/matrix interfaces containing amorphous films.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
G. C. Wei andP. F. Becher,Amer. Ceram. Soc. Bull. 64 (1985) 298.
P. D. Shalek et al., ibid. 65 (1986) 351.
S. T. Buljan, J. G. Baldoni andM. L. Huckabee,ibid. 66 (1987) 347.
M. R. Ruehle, B. O. Dalgleish andA. G. Evans,Scripta Met. 21 (1987) 681.
J. Homeny andW. L. Vaughn,MRS Bull. 7 Oct/Nov (1987) 66.
P. Angelini, W. Mader andP. F. Becher,Mater. Res. Soc. Symp. Proc. 78 (1987) 241.
A. Hoelscher, W. Braue andG. Ziegler, in preparation.
J. V. Milewski et al., J. Mater. Sci. 20 (1985) 1160.
N. K. Sharma, W. S. Williams andA. Zangvil,J. Amer. Ceram. Soc. 62 (1984) 715.
K. H. Jack,J. Mater. Sci. 11 (1976) 1135.
S. Shinozaki andK. R. Kinsman,Acta Metall. 26 (1978) 769.
S. R. Nutt,J. Amer. Ceram. Soc. 71 (1988) 149.
L. F. Allard, P. Pendleton andJ. S. Brinen, in Proceedings of the 44th Annual Meeting of the Electron Microscopy Society of America, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, August 10–15, 1986, edited by G. W. Bailey (San Francisco Press, San Francisco, 1986) p. 472.
S. R. Nutt andD. J. Philips, in Symposium on Interfaces in Metal-Matrix Composites, Annual Meeting of the Metallurgical Society, New Orleans, Louisiana, March 1986, edited by A. K. Dhingra and S. G. Fishman, p. 111.
V. K. Sarin andM. Ruehle,Composites 18 (1987) 129.
P. R. T. Jang andR. W. Carpenter, in Proceedings of the 44th Annual Metting of the Electron Microscopy Society of America, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, August 10–15, 1986, edited by G. W. Bailey, (San Francisco Press, San Francisco, 1986) p. 718.
J. Homeny, G. G. Nelson andS. H. Risbud,J. Amer. Ceram. Soc. 71 (1988) 386.
D. R. Clarke,Ultramicroscopy 4 (1979) 33.
L. K. V. Lou, T. E. Mitchell andA. H. Heuer,J. Amer. Ceram. Soc. 61 (1978) 462.
H. Schmidt andM. Ruehle,J. Mater. Sci. 19 (1984) 615.
M. Backhaus-Ricoult, J. Castaing andJ. L. Routbort,Rev. Phys. Appl. 23 (1988) 239.
K. Niihara et al, in Proceedings of the 3rd International Symposium on Ceramic Materials and Components for Engineers, Las Vegas, Nevada, November 1988, pp. 919–926.
J. R. Porter, F. F. Lange andA. H. Choski,Mater. Res. Soc. Symp. Proc. 78 (1987) 289.
W. M. Skiff andR. W. Carpenter, in Proceedings of the 40th Annual Metting of the Electron Microscopy Society of America, Washington, D.C., USA, August 9–13, 1982, edited by G. W. Bailey (San Francisco Press, San Francisco, 1982) p. 564.
W. Braue andR. W. Carpenter,J. Mater. Sci. 25 (1990) 2943.
R. W. Carpenter, W. Braue andR. A. Cutler, in Proceeding of the 45th Annual Meeting of the Electron Microscopy Society of America, Baltimore, Maryland, USA, August 2–7, 1987, edited by G. W. Bailey (San Francisco Press, San Francisco, 1987) p. 306.
N. J. Tighe, K. A. Hardman-Rhyne andY. N. Lu, in Proceedings of the 9th Annual Conference on Composites and Advanced Materials, Cocoa Beach, Florida, USA, January 20–23, 1985 (American Ceramic Society, 1985) p. 835.
J. K. Weiss andR. W. Carpenter, in Proceedings of the 46th Annual Meeting of the Electron Microscopy Society of America, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA, August 7–12, 1988, edited by G. W. Bailey (San Francisco Press, San Francisco, 1988) p. 510.
R. W. Carpenter,Mater. Sci. Engng A107 (1989) 207.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Braue, W., Carpenter, R.W. & Smith, D.J. High-resolution interface analysis of SiC-whisker-reinforced Si3N4 and Al2O3 ceramic matrix composites. J Mater Sci 25, 2949–2957 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00584910
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00584910