Managing mechanical and electrical properties of nanostructured Cu-Fe composite by aging treatment

Cu-Fe composites are a new generation of electromagnetic shielding materials. However, the substructure evolution of the two-phase composite is not clear in the aging process, and its plastic deformability is very limited in the nanostructured regime. In this work, nanostructured Cu-10Fe composites were prepared by heavy cold rolling, and the microstructure evolution and properties of the composites during aging were systematically studied. With increasing aging temperature, the strength and ductility change monotonically, while the electrical conductivity first increases and then decreases. Mechanisms for superior mechanical and electrical properties are further discussed, by quantifying the contributions of different microstructural constitutes.