m Phase layer on ion nitrided austenitic stainless steel (III): an epitaxial relationship between the m phase and the gamma parent phase and a review of structural identifications of this phase

• Published in: Surface & coatings technology 1998-09, Vol.116-119, p.184-188
• Main Authors: Marchev, K, Landis, M, Vallerio, R, Cooper, C V, Giessen, B C
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0257-8972

As we previously confirmed, the m phase, forming as a single-phase layer upon ion nitriding of AISI 316L stainless steel under mild conditions, has a centered tetragonal structure with strong composition dependence of the axial ratio, c/a, and, as recently reported, a strong duplex {111} and {100} texture normal to the surface with a surprisingly strong in-plane directional component. This texture is now demonstrated to be an extension of a corresponding duplex texture of the austenitic gamma parent phase, with m growing epitaxially on and into the gamma phase. Since there are some other interpretations of the m phase structure in the literature, a comparative discussion and additional data are given in Appendix A.