Two-phase state in Mg3Cd alloy

The kinetics of order-disorder processes in alloys of type Mg₃Cd and MgCd₃ in the single-phase and two-phase regions are investigated by measuring the electrical resistance of the material directly at the temperatures at which tests are carried out. It is shown that in a MgCd₃-type alloy the processes involved in an order-disorder transition proceed much more slowly in the two-phase region than in the single-phase region. The Mg₃Cd alloy, on the other hand, exhibits no such delay effects. The difference in the behavior of the investigated alloys is due to the fact that the lattice distortions accompanying transitions in the two-phase region are greater for MgCd₃ than for Mg₃Cd.