Nanophase materials are materials that have grain sizes under 100
nanometre
330px, Different lengths as in respect to the molecular scale.
The nanometre (international spelling as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; SI symbol: nm) or nanometer (American and British English spelling differences#-re ...
s. They have different mechanical and
optical properties The optical properties of a material define how it interacts with light. The optical properties of matter are studied in optical physics, a subfield of optics. The optical properties of matter include:
* Refractive index
*Dispersion
* Transmittan ...
compared to the large grained materials of the same
chemical composition
A chemical composition specifies the identity, arrangement, and ratio of the elements making up a compound.
Chemical formulas can be used to describe the relative amounts of elements present in a compound. For example, the chemical formula for ...
.
Transparency and different transparent colours can be achieved with nanophase materials by varying the grain size.
Nanophase materials
*Nanophase metals usually are many times harder but more
brittle
A material is brittle if, when subjected to stress, it fractures with little elastic deformation and without significant plastic deformation. Brittle materials absorb relatively little energy prior to fracture, even those of high strength. Br ...
than regular
metal
A metal (from ancient Greek, Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, e ...
s.
**
nanophase copper is a superhard material
**
nanophase aluminum
**
nanophase iron is iron with a grain size in the nanometer range. Nanocrystalline iron has a tensile strength of around 6 GPA, twice that of the best maraging steels.
*
Nanophase ceramics usually are more
ductile
Ductility is a mechanical property commonly described as a material's amenability to drawing (e.g. into wire). In materials science, ductility is defined by the degree to which a material can sustain plastic deformation under tensile stres ...
and less brittle than regular
ceramic
A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain, ...
s.
Footnotes
External links
Creating Nanophase Materials ''
Scientific American
''Scientific American'', informally abbreviated ''SciAm'' or sometimes ''SA'', is an American popular science magazine. Many famous scientists, including Albert Einstein and Nikola Tesla, have contributed articles to it. In print since 1845, it ...
'' (subscription required)
Nanophase Materials ''Michigan Tech''
''
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 n ...
''
Materials
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