Structural, thermal stability and defect studies of Fe-Ag alloy prepared by electrodeposition technique

An alloy of the immiscible constituents iron and silver was prepared by simultaneous electrodeposition of these materials from a single bath. A study of the crystallographic structure, magnetic behavior and defect kinetics of this alloy is presented. The alloy is heterogeneous, stable up to 573 K and shows no magnetization. The XRD pattern shows that the alloy is formed in pure fcc structure. Also, the crystallites are well-grown in size as shown by very sharp X-ray diffraction peaks. Mossbauer spectra indicated that the Fe atoms are totally dispersed in the Ag matrix. Positron lifetime measurements gave evidence for the presence of large vacancy clusters created during the electrodeposition process. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.