Year: 2011
Type: article
Abstract: Recent advances in quantitative convergent beam electron diffraction (QCBED) [1], [2], [3] have led to the solution of an 82 year old problem -determination of the bonding electron density in aluminium.Until the present determination [4], [5], there was considerable disparity between a large number of experimental and theoretical determinations.These disagreements culminated in two recent theoretical studies where one asserted that bonding in aluminium is octahedrally coordinated [6] and the other that it is tetrahedrally coordinated [7].In addition to the present QCBED determination, a density functional theory (DFT) first-principles calculation of the ground state electron distribution was performed.The QCBED and DFT determinations are in close agreement and show that the bonding electron density is concentrated exclusively in the tetrahedral interstices.The detailed understanding of bonding in aluminium resulting from the present work has led to a new understanding of the influence of interatomic bonding on the mechanical anisotropy of aluminium.Correlations between bonding and the morphologies of precipitates that form in aluminium alloys have also been identified.
Institution: Monash University
Language: English
Subfield: Radiation
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W2328658595