Influence of Ceramic Nanoparticles on Thermal Stability of Ultra Fine Grained Copper

A detailed study of the bulk ultra fine grained pure copper and copper with $Al_2O_3$ particles was carried out in the present work. The specimens were prepared by the high-pressure torsion and their microstructure was investigated by positron lifetime spectroscopy combined with transmission electron microscopy and microhardness tests. Defects in the as-deformed materials were characterized and the thermal stability of the ultra fine grained microstructure was subsequently examined in annealing experiments. An addition of $Al_2O_3$ nanoparticles was found to improve significantly the thermal stability of the ultra fine grained structure, the optimum content of $Al_2O_3$ being ≈0.5 wt.%.