Whisker and fiber reinforcement has been established as an effective toughening concept for monolithic structural ceramics to overcome limited fracture toughness and brittleness. SiC whiskers in particular combine both high strength and elastic moduli with good thermal stability and are compatible with most oxide and nonoxide matrices. As the major toughening mechanisms - crack branching, deflection and bridging - in SiC whiskenreinforced Al2O3 and Si3N41 are critically dependent on interface properties, a detailed TEM investigation was conducted on whisker/matrix interfaces in these all-ceramic- composites.In this study we present HREM images obtained at 400 kV from β-SiC/α-Al2O3 and β-SiC/β-Si3N4 interfaces, as well as preliminary analytical data. The Al2O3- base composite was hotpressed at 1830 °C/60 MPa in vacuum and the Si3N4-base material at 1725 °C/30 MPa in argon atmosphere, respectively, adding a total of 6 vt.% (Y2O3 + Al2O3) to the latter to promote densification.
Synergistic strengthening mechanism of copper matrix composite reinforced with nano-Al2O3 particles and micro-SiC whiskers
