Compact high-temperature shear-cell furnace for in-situ diffusion measurements

A compact-sized shear cell for in-situ interdiffusion measurements in liquid alloys at high-temperature is presented. It is designed for being used with X-ray radiography in microgravity environment and also in ground-based experiments. Within outer dimensions of 40×40×20 mm, the shear cell contains six samples in long capillaries which remain spatially separated during melting, homogenisation and optional μg-injection. The diffusion is then initiated by shearing both material samples together. Operating temperature is as high as 1500 °C. Stable temperature distribution is found and no sample leakage occurs. The thin layout of the shear cell results in a good X-ray contrast supported by making use of graphite heating foils. First results of ground experiments are presented.