Identifying  governing factors for stability is an underlying goal in the field of  metallic materials.  To further this goal, we developed a model to  reexamine intermetallic reactions through Lewis theory using moments of  the density of states (DOS) distribution.  The third moment of a DOS  distribution, �3, measures the balance of states above and below a  pseudogap.  For a given �3, the ideal occupancy populates states only  up to the pseudogap.  Using the �3-ideal occupancy, a link to Lewis  theory can be made: systems with fewer electrons than the ideal are  �3-acidic and systems with more are �3-basic.  Reacting a �3-acid  with a �3-base shifts the DOS curve shape to better accommodate  electrons within the distribution, neutralizing the reactants.   Stability ranges and local geometrical structure of intermetallic  phases can be rationalized with the driving force of �3-neutralization.

Intermetallic phase formation as an acid-base reaction:  Extending         the Lewis Theory using the method of moments

244th National Meeting (2012)

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