ABSTRACT
The development of fabricating processes conducted in evacuated systems or at high pressure requires knowledge of the influence of pressure on phase equilibria in materials systems. Vacuum arc melting, electron beam melting, and pulsed laser deposition are examples of processes that proceed at low pressures and high temperatures. In pulsed laser deposition the flux of laser irradiation focused on the target material is high enough to cause melting and vaporization. Calculation of the transient temperature profiles that are developed during the process requires the assumption of local thermal and phase equilibrium between the liquid and the vapor plume. Control of the composition of the plume produced by irradiation of a multicomponent target requires knowledge of the influence of pressure on the phase equilibria.
