It has been established that quasicrystals with icosahedral point group symmetry occur in a rapidly solidified Mg₃₂ (Al, Zn)₄₉ alloy chosen on the basis of its equilibrium crystal structure. This alloy has a natural tendency to form icosahedral atomic clusters stabilised by size difference amongst constituent atoms. Results highlight the relationship between equilibrium crystal structure and the tendency to form quasicrystals.

Some interesting aspects of the temperature dependence of the Planck’s functionφ and heat capacities of metals exhibiting the h.c.p. ⇄ b.c.c. transformation have been brought to light by the use of reduced temperature (T*) and Planck’s function (-φ T*). It has been shown that tangents drawn to the -φ T* vsT* plots of these metals at any chosen value ofT* intersect at a point whose coordinates are defined by the slope and intercept ofφ vs entropy plots at any homologous temperature and the selectedT* value. A generalized expression obtained for the temperature dependence ofφ has been used to demonstrate that the heat capacity of these metals may be visualized to have structural and material components.

The electric potential across a melting sample of pure lead was measured as a function of time. A difference of the order of a few hundred microvolts was seen between the measured values of the potential and those calculated using the temperature gradients and the thermopowers of the solid and the liquid phases. This difference persists as long as the solid-liquid interface moves and is attributed to the Galvani potential present at the solid-liquid interface. It is suggested that such measurements can be used to obtain the value of the Fermi energy for liquids.