Field-dependent neutron depolarization study of the ferrite formation in medium-carbon steels

Abstract Neutron depolarization experiments have been performed on the ferrite and pearlite phase transformations of the medium-carbon C60 and C35 steels. The interaction of the polarized neutron beam with the ferromagnetic ferrite grains gives information on the mean magnetization and the magnetic correlation length. From these parameters the ferrite fraction and the mean ferrite grain size are determined in situ as a function of time and temperature during the phase transformations. The applied magnetic field was varied periodically in order to record a full hysteresis curve of the magnetization, which gives essential information on the microstructure of the ferromagnetic ferrite grains. The field dependence of the mean particle size during the early stages of the pearlite formation is a strong indication of multi-domain behavior, which is absent in the austenite–ferrite transformation and at the end of the pearlite formation.