martensite

American  

[mahr-tn-zahyt] / ˈmɑr tnˌzaɪt /

noun

Metallurgy.

1. a metastable microconstituent of any of various forms of carbon steel, produced by undercooling sufficiently below the normal transformation temperature, especially a hard, brittle product of the decomposition of austenite, produced in this way.

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martensite British  

/ ˌmɑːtɪnˈzɪtɪk, ˈmɑːtɪnˌzaɪt /

noun

1. a constituent formed in steels by rapid quenching, consisting of a supersaturated solid solution of carbon in iron. It is formed by the breakdown of austenite when the rate of cooling is large enough to prevent pearlite forming

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Other Word Forms

• martensitic
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of martensite

1895–1900; named after Adolf Martens (died 1914), German metallurgist; see -ite ¹