Diffusion Mechanism in F.C.C. Metals

Curvature in the Arrhenius plot of self‐diffusion in metals is commonly interpreted as resulting from a monovacancy jump process at low temperatures with an increasing contribution from a divacancy jump process at higher temperatures. Recently it has been suggested that the Arrhenius curvature in b.c.c. metals could be attributed to monovacancies with temperature‐dependent activation enthalpies. The grounds why the same model could not be applied to f.c.c. metals are examined with particular emphasis on the diffusion and defect properties of aluminum.