Published online by Cambridge University Press: 31 January 2011
An Al-5 wt. % Co alloy has been rapidly solidified from the liquid state, resulting in the formation of a slightly supersaturated aluminum solid solution and the monoclinic Al9Co2 phase. High-resolution electron microscopy and electron diffraction have been extensively employed to characterize the as-solidified as well as the annealed foils. The high-resolution micrographs of the as-solidified solid solution showed the presence of clustering and D 1a - type ordering on an extremely small microscopic scale. Annealing at temperatures above 623 K resulted in the precipitation of Al9Co2 in the form of platelets arranged in a Widmanstätten pattern. Orientation relationships between the Al9Co2 platelets and the matrix have been established. Guinier-Preston zonelike platelets on close-packed {111} planes, however, have also been observed upon electron irradiation in the annealed alloys, presumably due to the enhanced diffusivity of cobalt atoms.