Study of diffusion and related phenomena by electron probe microanalyser

Abstract

Interaction of various materials at high temperatures leads to the formation of reaction zones of differing nature ranging from simple solid solutions to multiphase structures. Understanding the diffusion processes leading to the formation of reaction zone and its nature requires an accurate estimation of composition and the distribution of the phases formed. Electron probe microanalyser (EPMA) is an indispensable technique for this purpose, where the quantitative analysis of micron sized layers formed in the diffusion zone is required. Application of EPMA to study the diffusion processes in several metallic systems is dealt in detail. Utility of this technique to study problems related to contact metallurgy in semiconductors and practical problems of joining, particularly to that of diffusion bonding, is also described in this paper.