A novel primitive cubic Al-Fe-Si phase in an Al-0.5Fe-0.2Si (wt.%) alloy

We report the identification of a new ternary Al-Fe-Si phase synthesized by arc-melting. Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy measurements show an homogeneous chemical distribution within the intermetallic grain with an overall stoichiometry equal to Al81.0Fe13.6Si5.4 (at.%). Atomically resolved High-Angle Annular Dark Field images collected along the [001] zone-axis are consistent with a cubic structure with an unit cell parameter close to 8.9 angstrom. Using microdiffraction analysis, it was possible to explore the zero-order Laue zone (ZOLZ) and first-order Laue zone (FOLZ) . This electron diffraction characterization leads to the conclusion that the Al81.0Fe13.6Si5.4 (at.%) crystallizes in the Pm (3) over bar space group.