Superior high-temperature strength of a carbide-reinforced high-entropy alloy with ultrafine eutectoid structure

Refractory alloys with high-temperature softening resistance are crucial for extreme high-temperature components in aerospace and weapon equipment. Traditional alloys and single-phase refractory high-entropy alloys suffer from unstable microstructures and loss of strength at high temperatures. Here we report a strategy to obtain a superior strong high-entropy alloy by introducing carbides to form micro-nano scale eutectic and eutectoid structures. These metal-carbide interfaces remain stable under high-temperature deformation and exhibit strong dislocation blocking effects. The ultrafine eutectoid structure provides a primary strengthening effect due to its numerous enhanced phase interfaces. The resulting alloy achieves a high temperature yield strength of 1.17 GPa at 1473 K and 0.92 GPa at 1673 K. This work provides valuable insights for optimizing the high-temperature performance and microstructure design of high-temperature composites to further extend their potential applications in high-temperature areas.