Self-accommodation in martensite (Q1196252)

A shape-memory material is said to have self-accommodation property if it is able to transform from the high-temperature austenite to the low- temperature martensite phase without any apparent change in shape. The author undertakes a mathematical penetrating analysis of the self- accommodation in martensite. Necessary and sufficient conditions on the lattice parameters of material are given guaranteeing that the material forms a self-accommodation microstructure. In the particular case of the cubic austenite it is shown that the material is self-accommodating if and only if the volume is preserving, and a comparison of the results obtained with the available experimental data is given. Of real interest are conclusions and discussion in the final section of the paper.