Description of two-phase materials using discrete atom method

In metallic alloys, especially Ni-base superalloys, a certain microstructure, formed by second-phase coherent precipitates can be observed experimentally. To understand the morphological evolution of the precipitate's shape, a lot of theoretical and numerical work has been done during the past few years. Apart from finite and boundary element investigations founding on continuum mechanics descriptions, one alternative to simulate equilibrium morphologies is to use the Discrete Atom Method (DAM), based on a combination of statistical mechanics and linear elasticity. As an example, the equilibrium and stability of a misfitting isotropic second phase particle is treated by this method, taking into account elastic strain and interfacial energy.