Antiphase domain structure in AuCu Alloy particles

AuCu alloy particles were prepared by vacuum evaporation technique and studied by means of high resolution electron microsocpy including lattice image technique. The structure of the alloy particles just after the deposition was, in general, the ordered structure, AuCu I, and the following heat treatment after the deposition was necessary to form AuCu II particles. The growth process from AuCu I to AuCu II was followed up by the observation of specimens with various durations of the heat treatment. The simultaneous evaporation technique was more favourable to grow AuCu II particles than the successive evaporation technique. With decreasing the particle size, the transformation from AuCu I to AuCu II turned to be difficult and AuCu II particles less than 80 A in diameter could not be found in the present experiment. For small AuCu II particles, the distortion of the antiphase domain boundaries at the periphery of particles was observed, besides a zigzag nature of the antiphase domain boundaries.