Surface and bulk modification of manganese steel with high-current low-energy electron beam

With the help of metallographic methods, X-ray analysis, TEM, and microhardness measurements, the structure and phase transformations as well as general characteristics of strengthening of quenched manganese steel irradiated with low-energy, high-current electron beam have been investigated. It was found that power electron beam treatment leads to surface and bulk modification of the material. In near the surface layer, the structure is formed which characterized by the presence of cellular and striped dislocation substructures, deformation twins, ε-martensite crystals, and nanosized M₂₃C₆ carbide precipitates. In the bulk of the material, the layers with increased microhardness values are formed in which there are increased number of dislocation density and ε-martensite crystals.