Structure of Melt-Spun Co₂MnAl Heusler Alloy

The growth-related microstructure and texture of the Co₂MnAl-type Heusler alloy in the form of a melt-spun ribbon was studied by electron microscopy, electron backscattered diffraction and X-ray diffraction. It is shown that melt spinning produces a single-phase disordered Heusler alloy. The fine grain structure at the wheel side of the ribbon exhibits no texture, while dominant columnar grain structure formed on the free surface side exhibits the ⟨111⟩ fibre texture with a declination by about 10 degrees in the spinning direction. The dendritic growth of columnar crystals causes inhomogeneity of the chemical composition on a micrometre scale with a higher Co and Al concentration in the centre of dendritic arms and a higher concentration of Mn at the dendrite arm boundaries.