Study on the Effect of Melt Convection on Phase Separation Structures in Undercooled CuCo Alloys Using an Electromagnetic Levitator Superimposed with a Static Magnetic Field

We studied the effect of melt convection on phase separation structures in undercooled Cu₈₀Co₂₀ alloys by using an electromagnetic levitator, where a static magnetic field was applied to control convection in the molten alloys. It was found that, when the static magnetic field was relatively small, dispersed structures with relatively fine Co-rich spheres distributed in the matrix of the Cu-rich phase were observed. However, a few large, coalesced Co-rich phases appeared in the Cu-rich matrix when the magnetic field exceeded a certain value, i.e., approximately 1.5 T in this study. The mean diameter of the droplet-shaped Co-rich phases distributed in the matrix of the Cu-rich phase increased gradually with the magnetic field and increased rapidly at approximately 1.5 T. Moreover, it was speculated from the result of periodic laser heating that the marked change in the phase separation structures at approximately 1.5 T might be due to a convective transition from turbulent flow to laminar flow in the molten sample, where the time variation of temperature in the lower part of the electromagnetically levitated molten sample was measured when the upper part of the sample was periodically heated.