Abstract: Elemental powders of Cu and Fe were ball milled for various time durations up to 100 h. The various stages of forced alloying by ball milling, leading to instability of elemental crystalline phases and formation of quasicrystalline phases were monitored using X-ray diffraction. Diffusion of Fe into the Cu matrix is proposed as the cause which triggers the instability of crystalline phases and leads to the formation of quasicrystalline phases after 10 h of milling. Milling for 100 h resulted in two different quasicrystalline phases with different lattice constants. Role of the nanocrystalline microstructure as an important criterion for the destabilisation of crystalline phases is explained. It is suggested that the formation of nanocrystalline microstructure and their subsequent transformation into quasicrystalline phases may be associated with a continuous increase in the disclination content of the system, which had formed as a result of continued milling and mechanical deformation.

Key words: