Sintering study of silver particles by in situ electron microscopy

Micron size silver spherical particles were sintered in the hot stage of an electron microscope between 370 and 720°C. In the 370 to 520°C temperature range, sintering can be explained either by grain-boundary diffusion or dislocation slip. At higher temperatures, the controlling mechanism changes from surface or grain-boundary diffusion to volume diffusion from 570 to 720°C. These conclusions are based on observations of neck growth and shrinkage and on analyses of the shapes of the sintering curves.