In Situ Heating Positron Annihilation Lifetime Spectroscopy Experiments on an Al–Mg Alloy

The binding between vacancies and Mg atoms in an aluminum solid solution is not fully understood but essential for understanding its role in age hardening of many Al alloys. After annealing and quenching, Mg prevents the loss of excess vacancies during natural ageing and forms complexes containing one, possibly two, vacancies, and various Mg atoms. By heating the alloy after natural ageing, these complexes are dissolved, i.e., natural ageing is reverted. This reversion process is studied by in situ positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy utilizing the very high count rate at the accelerator driven facility ELBE. Positron spectra are continuously acquired during heating at rates between 3 and 50 K min⁻¹. After correcting for the contributions of the oxidized surface and decomposing spectra into components, the process can be followed in detail and is found to take place in distinct stages: first, the number of vacancy–Mg complexes is reduced and then the liberated vacancies agglomerate into clusters that eventually dissolve at even higher temperatures.