Diffusion of tin in α-iron Original Research Article

The effect of the magnetic ordering on the diffusion of Sn was investigated; for this purpose, the measurements were made in an extended temperature range (1163–673 K), using several techniques like serial sectioning, heavy ion Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (HIRBS) and Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) in superposed ranges of temperature. By spanning the temperature range with respect to the previous works, the Arrhenius plot was extended over 10 decades; then the variation of the slope at the Curie temperature and a soft-up curvature in the ferromagnetic region is now clear. The curvature observed is well fitted by the model developed by Ruch et al. (J. Phys. Chem. Solids, 1976, 37, 649). The parameter that takes into account the influence of the magnetic order in the vacancy mobility during the Sn diffusion process is quite similar to that observed in Fe self-diffusion; then, no magnetic interaction between the impurity and the matrix is postulated.