Picture of the month - July 2026

The sample is a CuZnAl shape memory (elastocaloric) alloys. In this composition range, it displays a reversible martensitic transformation, leading to the formation of martensitic variants with different orientations at low temperature. The sample was cooled using a custom Peltier device under vacuum, allowing microscopic observation down to −75 °C. This image was captured at −40 °C under polarized light.

Oneil Goisot is a third-year PhD student at the SIMaP and Néel Institute.