Time-differential length-change measurements after temperature changes were used to study high-temperature atomic defects in intermetallic alloys. Enthalpies of 1.0 and 1.5eV were derived, for B2-type Fe55Al45, for the temperature-dependent amplitude and time-constant of the length change, respectively. These coincided with the vacancy formation and migration enthalpies which had been found during earlier positron studies, thus demonstrating the feasibility of the technique.

Time-Differential Length-Change Measurements for Thermal Defect Investigations: Intermetallic B2-FeAl and B2-NiAl Compounds, a Case Study. H.E.Schaefer, K.Frenner, R.Würschum: Physical Review Letters, 1999, 82[5], 948-51