Spinodal-modulated solid solution delivers a strong and ductile refractory high-entropy alloy

) arrangement via spinodal decomposition, producing chemical composition modulations and, more importantly, elastic strain on a length scale of a few tens of nanometers. The periodically spaced β*, with large lattice distortion, is particularly potent in heightening the ruggedness of the terrain for the passage of dislocations. This makes the motion of dislocations sluggish, causing a traffic jam and cross-slip, facilitating dislocation interactions, multiplication, and accumulation. Wavy dislocations form walls that entangle with slip bands, promoting strain hardening and delocalizing plastic strain. A simultaneous combination of high yield strength (1.1 GPa) and tensile strain to failure (28%) is achieved; these values are among the best reported so far for refractory high-entropy alloys.