Effect of an Electric Field on the Texture and Microstructure Evolution during Annealing of High Reduction Cold-Rolled Ni

The influence of an electric field on the annealing of high purity (99.999%) cold rolled nickel has been investigated. Annealing was carried out for 2 hours at temperatures between 300oC and 800oC with and without an electric field of strength 2.0KVcm-1. The microstructure and fraction of cube texture resulting were characterized using electron backscattering pattern (EBSP) technique. Annealing in an electric field leads to somewhat smaller average values of the cube fraction and grain sizes compared to annealing without an electric field. The highest temperature (800oC) annealing in an electric field results in microstructures with a lower fractional twin boundary length.