Single-phase high-entropy intermetallic compounds (HEICs): bridging high-entropy alloys and ceramics

High-entropy intermetallic compounds (HEICs) were fabricated by mechanical alloying and spark plasma sintering to fill a knowledge gap between the traditional high-entropy alloys (HEAs) and emerging high-entropy ceramics (HECs). Notably, several four- or five-component equimolar aluminides, such as the B2-phase (Fe_1/5Co_1/5Ni_1/5Mn_1/5Cu_1/5)Al, have been made into single-phase HEICs for the first time. Thermodynamic modeling and a reversible, temperature-dependent, phase-stability experiment suggest that such B2-phase HEICs are entropy-stabilized phases. The structure of these HEICs resembles that of HECs with high-entropy mixing of four or five elements of nearly equal fractions in one and only one sublattice, but with significant (∼10%) anti-site defects (differing from typical HECs). A new phase stability rule for forming single B2-phase HEICs is proposed. Five additional HEICs of predominantly D0₂₂ phases have also been made. This study broadens the families of equimolar, single-phase, high-entropy materials that have been successfully fabricated.