Crystalline Nature of Metals

Metals at the atomic level are organized as crystalline solids

Exist in crystal lattices or atom lattices 14 basic crystal unit cell diagrams 3 basic forms (of the 14) cover almost all metals Close-packed and non-close packed patterns

Stacking of Atoms
60

A A

ABAB

ABCABC

Close Packed Hexagonal

Face Centered Cubic

Body Centered Cubic

Geometry of Lattices: CPH

a

Packing Factor
pf = Volume of Atoms in Unit Cell / Volume of Lattice Less than 1 because atoms are spheres Unit cell is not same as total number in lattice; lattice atoms are shared

(1) FCC (2) CPH (3) BCC

= = =

.74 .74 .68

Fundamentals of Crystals
Atoms in a solid metal always organize as a crystalline array Laws of thermodynamics

(1) Lowest energy-stable state (2) Crystals develop

Crystals develop

Forces exerted by aggregate on each new atom Aggregate is repetition of those forces acting on earlier atoms; therefore, each atom occupies a similar position in concourse with its neighbors Crystal:

homogeneous body bounded by smooth plane surfaces that are an external expression of an orderly internal atomic arrangement.

Fundamentals of Crystals
Atoms, ions, or molecules can organize as a crystal Arrangement / pattern = crystal lattice Study of crystals = x-ray diffraction

When crystalline solids are heated...

Particles vibrate about their lattice position High heat will break crystal bonds Increasing heat will not increase temperature until all solid phase is liquid. Added heat is used up in breaking lattice bonds, which hold crystal particles together.

Fundamentals of Crystals
Types of Crystal Structure Ionic crystals (Sodium Chloride Na+Cl-) Each positive sodium ion is surrounded by 6 negative chloride ions Each negative chloride ion is surrounded by 6 positive sodium ions

Bonding Forces + and Hard High melting point Ions vibrate about fixed points, causing poor heat and electrical property

Fundamentals of Crystals
Types of Crystal Structure (cont.) Covalent Crystals

Diamond, Quartz Lattices made up of uncharged atoms share electrons in pairs by covalent bonding

Bond may be very strong

Often have high melting points, are hard, and are poor conductors Crystals are called giant molecules or macromolecules Note: Noncrystalline Solids: Many solids do not have a crystalline structure, such as glass and many plastics. They are sometimes called amorphous solids.

Fundamentals of Crystals

Metallic Crystals Copper -- positive ions, definite pattern

Ions surrounded by cloud of negative electrons

Attraction between negative and positive charged particles holds crystal together Ions are fixed in place; valence electrons can move freely

Good electrical and thermal conductors

Fundamentals of Crystals

Molecular Crystals Sugar or ice

(1) Weak bond, dipole attraction (2) Positive end attracted to negative end of neighboring molecule (as in case of H 2O)

Bond is weak
Crystals are soft Low melting points No free electrons to conduct electricity

Gases and liquids

Ionic Particles
positive & negative ions

Covalent
uncharged atoms

Molecular
molecules

Metallic
positive ions and free electrons

Bonding

attraction between + ions and ions Hard, brittle, high melting point, nonconductors

shared pairs of electrons

polar attraction

attraction between + ions and electrons

Properties

Very hard, very brittle, very high melting point, nonconductors

Soft, volatile, low melting point, nonconductors

Soft to hard, moderate to high melting point, good conductors of heat and electricity

2800 F (1538C)
2554 F (1538C)

Liquid Delta iron, body-centered cubic Austenite, non-magnetic face-centered cubic

Temperature

1666 F (1538C) 1414F (1538C)

Ferrite, non-magnetic body-centered cubic Ferrite, magnetic body-centered cubic

Time

Body-Centered Cubic (BCC)

Cubic unit structure is made up of atoms at each corner of cube and one in the center. Steel under 1333F (723C) has this arrangement, and is called alpha iron or ferrite. Metals such as chromium, columbium, barium, vanadium, molybdenum, and tungsten, crystallize into this lattice structure Cubes are identified within the lattice structure Lower ductility, but higher yield strength, than facecentered cubic metals

Face-Centered Cubic (FCC)

Atoms of calcium, aluminum, copper, lead, nickel, gold, platinum, etc., arrange themselves with an atom in each corner of the cube, and one in the center of each cube face. When steel is above the upper critical temperature, it rearranges its atoms to this FCC structure, and is called gamma iron or austenite

Close-Packed Hexagonal (CPH) or Hexagonal Close-Packed (HCP)

Close-packed hexagonal structure Found in many of the least common metals: Such as: beryllium, zinc, cobalt, titanium, magnesium, cadmium are examples of metals that crystallize into this structure Lattice structure spacing does not allow rows of atoms to easily slide over one another in CPH

These metals have lower plasticity and ductility than cubic structures

Plastic Deformation
Plastic flow occurs when planes of atoms slip past one Close-packed planes do this

another. more easily (top) than planes aligned

in another direction (bottom)

Metal Structure & Crystallization

Vacancy and

interstitial crystal defects.

Vacant lattice site

Interstitial atom

Crystalline Structure of Metals

Vacancy site

Rows

of atoms move, one atom at a time, to fill vacancy or space created by dislocated atoms. Interstitial atoms jam up the slip planes of atoms, making the metal that contains them harder and less ductile.

Force

Interstitial atom

Dislocations

Edge dislocation

Screw dislocation

Crystallographic Planes
Slip is confined to certain preferred crystallographic planes (lined area).