Enhancing the strength and ductility of a medium entropy alloy through non-basal slip activation

Zhen Chen, Yang Chen, Daixiu Wei, Xu Liu, Xuan Luo, Henggao Xiang, Wu Gong, Stefanus Harjo, Takuro Kawasaki, Rui Hou, Jinpeng Zhang, Demin Zhu, Jiheng Tang, Luo Li, Jianghui Xie, Gong Zheng, Zhixiang Qi, Howard Sheng () and Guang Chen ()
Additional contact information
Zhen Chen: Nanjing University of Science and Technology
Yang Chen: Nanjing University of Science and Technology
Daixiu Wei: Nanjing University of Science and Technology
Xu Liu: Nanjing University of Science and Technology
Xuan Luo: Nanjing Tech University
Henggao Xiang: Nanjing University of Science and Technology
Wu Gong: Japan Atomic Energy Agency, Tokai-mura
Stefanus Harjo: Japan Atomic Energy Agency, Tokai-mura
Takuro Kawasaki: Japan Atomic Energy Agency, Tokai-mura
Rui Hou: Nanjing University of Science and Technology
Jinpeng Zhang: Nanjing University of Science and Technology
Demin Zhu: Nanjing University of Science and Technology
Jiheng Tang: Nanjing University of Science and Technology
Luo Li: Nanjing University of Science and Technology
Jianghui Xie: Nanjing University of Science and Technology
Gong Zheng: Nanjing University of Science and Technology
Zhixiang Qi: Nanjing University of Science and Technology
Howard Sheng: Center for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research
Guang Chen: Nanjing University of Science and Technology

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-13

Abstract: Abstract Developing alloys with both ultrahigh strength and ductility remains a formidable scientific challenge, primarily due to the inherent strength-ductility tradeoff. Here, we present an approach to enhance the ductility and strength of a medium-entropy alloy (MEA) featuring a fully recrystallized face-centered cubic/hexagonal close-packed dual-phase ultrafine-grained architecture. This is achieved by activating unusual non-basal slips in the ordered hexagonal close-packed superlattice nanoprecipitates, resulting in this MEA that exhibits remarkable uniform elongation (εu) and ultrahigh yield strength (σy) across a wide temperature range, particularly at cryogenic temperatures (σy ~ 2100 MPa, εu ~ 15%). The non-basal slips in the secondary phase are activated at ultrahigh stress levels, which are compatible with the increased yield strength of the MEA attained through multiple strengthening mechanisms, including grain boundaries, lattice friction, and second-phase nanoprecipitates provided by the multi-principal elements of the entropy alloy. The deformation mechanism elucidated in this work not only leverages the significant strengthening and strain hardening effects of brittle nanoprecipitates but also enables the ductilization of the alloy through sequential non-basal slip during ongoing deformation.

Date: 2025
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-61494-7

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