Growth of eutectic silicon from primary silicon crystals in aluminium-silicon alloys

摘要

Technological interest in aluminium-silicon alloys derives, fundamentally, from their excellent moulding properties provided by the presence of silicon. In addition, they posses high thermal and electrical conductivities and .good corrosion resistance. The possibility of modification of their cast structure by adding small quantities of alkaline and alkaline-earth elements makes their mechanical characteristics very competitive. These technological reasons make this group of alloys very interesting, as does the fact they are a typical "metal-nonmetal system"; providing valuable information on the nuclcation and growth of "typical nonmctallic" phases (1,2). This information is directly transferable to other systems.