Copper concentration inside Guinier-Preston I zones formed in an Al –Cu alloy

The copper concentration inside a Guinier-Preston (GPI) zone was studied by means of an extended Hückel molecular orbital (EHMO) calculation. The present EHMO calculation revealed that the Cu concentration inside a GPI zone depends on the size of the zone. The GPI zone comprises both Cu and Al in a small GPI zone, whereas the Cu concentration inside the GPI zone increases to nearly 100 at.% Cu in a large GPI zone. A compressive lattice distortion, which is associated with the zone, increases the stability, but when a GPI zone is 5 nm in diameter, the stabilizing effect of the zone is estimated to be not higher than 10% of the chemical energy due to Cu coalescence.