We present a combined experimental and computational investigation of phase stability and mechanical properties in the Al-Cu-Mg-Zn quaternary system. Samples containing different relative compositions were prepared using magnetron sputtering and investigated by electron microscopic and X-ray based methods. To classify the technical relevance of the samples, the indentation hardness was measured. The phase stability was studied computationally using a cluster expansion approach based on density functional theory (DFT) methods in a comprehensive screening of the structural and stoichiometric configuration space. Upon decreasing Cu concentration, a transition from an FCC to a mixed FCC/BCC crystal system and significant changes in the mechanical properties depending on Valence Electron Concentration (VEC) and atomic size differences (δr) was observed experimentally. The corresponding crystallographic phases were assigned by XRD and the experimentally observed phase transition was confirmed by the computational screening of formation energies. Since to date, quaternary complex light metal alloy systems cannot be reliably predicted, this is an important step towards a priori modelling of this class of materials.

An investigation of the effect of solutes on the migration of a single {101¯2} Gd decorated twin boundary in a Mg-4wt.% Gd binary alloy in terms of the corresponding stress-strain response and the defect structure in the wake of (de)twinning was undertaken in this work. The results were benchmarked against those of a pure Mg sample that was tested under same conditions. We established that the critical stresses for both twinning and detwinning increased by 29% and 10%, respectively, due to the addition of Gd. We showed that the latter is mediated by the pinning effect of Gd atoms that decorated the pre-existing twin boundaries in the alloy. Conversely, a 68% decrease in the detwinning stress was recorded in pure Mg. We attributed the decrease to the nucleation-free nature of detwinning along with the absence of solutes atoms at the pre-existing twin boundaries. Unlike previous investigations, the work does not just highlight how twinning and detwinning affects the concurrent slip activity in pure Mg and Mg alloys, it establishes a direct link between these activities and the magnitude of the observed mechanical response.

Nanoporous gold (NPG) made by dealloying exemplifies materials with random bicontinuous microstructures that can be approximated by leveled-wave type models. As a distinguishing feature, the characteristic length scale – often quantified by the “ligament size” L – of NPG may be tuned over several orders of magnitude while the microstructural geometry retains a high degree of self-similarity. It is therefore essential to have at hand accurate procedures for determining the size by experiment and to match it to analogous size metrics of model scenarios. Working with a set of NPG samples of widely different size, we compare ligament size distributions determined by analysis of scanning electron micrographs to those of the leveled-wave model. The model is representative of various material types with random bicontinuous microstructures. The size distribution is remarkably uniform over the cross-section of experimental samples. Furthermore, the distribution evolves self-similarly upon coarsening, and the normalized distribution width agrees closely to that of the model. A measure for size determined by the electrochemical capacitance ratio method correlates well with L. This supports a protocol for converting between the two measures. As a dimensionless factor characteristic of the microstructural geometry of random dual phase microstructures, the product of L and the specific surface area is found consistent between experiment and model. The findings suggest conversion factors between the various metrics, and they advertise the combination of NPG and the leveled-wave model as a showcase for characterizing the characteristic length scale of random bicontinuous microstructures.