Microstructure of austenitic steel after the oscillatory compression test

The paper presents the influence of oscillatory torsion on the microstructure of compressed cylindrical samples of austenitic steel. The austenitic steel was deformed at room temperature using a standard compression test and oscillatory torsion test at constant parameters: the torsion angle a = š5 and torsion frequency fsk = 1.8 Hz. Samples were deformed at strains of ?= 4. Optical observations showed that well-defined slip bands and clusters of slip lines were present in the austenitic steel after two modes of deformation. Specimens deformed during the oscillatory compression test exhibit well-defined deformation twins intersected by shear bands. The structure of shear bands consists of grains between 50 nm and 400 nm in diameter. The analysis of selected diffraction pattern areas has shown that diffraction spots are arranged in rings, indicating that disorientation angles of grain boundaries are higher than 15°. Our investigations constitute a preliminary stage of complex analysis of reactions of metals under diversified process conditions.