Free dendritic tip growth velocities measured in Al-Ge

We determine the tip growth velocities of equiaxed dendrites in an Al-24 at. % Ge alloy using in situ x-ray radiography. The tip growth velocity is a main characteristic of dendritic growth and allows for an accurate comparison against theories and simulations describing the growth of a single dendrite tip or an array of dendrites. The disk-shaped samples are 200 or 350 mu m thin and are positioned horizontally in a near-isothermal furnace to suppress buoyancy and gravity-driven melt flows. We obtain a large data set of free dendritic tip growth velocities of A1 dendrites over one order of magnitude (4-140 mu m s(-1)) and over a decade of global undercooling (1-10 K). No indications for a significant deviation from three-dimensional growth kinetics due to the sample confinement are found.