ABSTRACT
The term "rapid solidification" does not, in principle, exclude techniques of rapidly forming nonequilibrium solid starting other than from the molten state. Thus condensation from vapour, deposition from plasmas, and formation by chemical reaction, implantation, or interdiffusion are not excluded. Rapid solidification processing certainly includes all steps subsequent to the initial "solidification" step that influence the product of that critical step, i.e., consolidation, heat treatment, etc., as well as the structure and properties of the product at all stages of processing. This perceived breadth of scope of the subject is particularly important when considering prospects for further development. This is done in Sections II and III. This enables the place of rapid solidification in the future of materials science and engineering to be assessed (Section IV).
