The abnormal carbon redistribution in lath martensite during tempering in Mn-patterned steels

Martensite tempering is a critical step to achieve high strength with decent ductility. It is well-known that, during tempering, the carbon is sequentially arranged as segregation, transition carbide and cementite. Abnormally, this study shows the absence of carbide precipitation in Mn-depleted martensite during tempering when Mn distribution is heterogeneous between austenite and martensite. After fast heating and short austenitization from Mn-depleted ferrite and Mn-enriched cementite, the high-temperature austenite with Mn heterogeneous distribution has formed, resulting in the formation of alternating Mn-depleted lath martensite and Mn-enriched film retained austenite (RA) after quenching. In comparison with the carbide precipitation in conventional lath martensite with Mn homogeneous distribution during tempering at 150–500 °C, carbide formation is completely inhibited in Mn-depleted lath martensite. Instead, carbon atoms diffuse from Mn-depleted martensite to its neighboring Mn-enriched film RA, leading to an increased carbon content in RA. This is mainly attributed to the strong interaction between Mn and carbon, further assisted by high dislocation density and small width of lath martensite. Additionally, this RA can promote carbon diffusion in the interior due to its gradient Mn distribution.