Mitigating Strain Localization via Stabilized Phase Boundaries for Strengthening Multi-Principal Element Alloys.

Multi-principal element alloys (MPEA) demonstrate exceptional stability during rapid solidification, making them ideal candidates for additive manufacturing and other high-design-flexibility techniques. Unexpectedly, MPEA failure often mimics that of conventional metals, with strain localization along phase or grain boundaries leading to typical crack initiation. Most strategies aim at reducing strain localization either suppress the formation of high-energy sites or dissipate energy at crack tips to enhance toughness, rarely achieving a synergy of both.