Internal friction due to domain-wall motion in martensitically transformed A15 compounds

A lattice instability in A15 materials in some cases leads to a cubic-to-tetragonal martensitic transformation at low temperatures. The transformed material orients in lamellae with c axes alternately aligned along the <100> directions producing domain walls between the lamellae. An internal-friction (delta) feature below T/sub m/ is attributed to stress-induced domain-wall motion. The magnitude of the friction increases as temperature is lowered below T/sub m/ as (1-c/a) increases, and behaves as (1-c/a)2 from T/sub m/ down to the superconducting critical temperature where the increasing tetragonality is inhibited. The effect of strain in the lattice is to decrease the domain-wall internal friction, but not affect T/sub m/. Neutron-induced disorder and the addition of some third-elements in alloying decrease both delta and T/sub m/, with some elements reducing only the former. Less than 1 at. % H is seen to completely suppress both delta and T/sub m. Martensitically transformed V2Zr demonstrates low-temperature internal-friction and modulus behavior consists with easy β/m wall motion relative to the easy m/m motion of the A15's. For the V2Zr, a peak in delta is observed, qualitatively in agreement with expected β/m wall motion