title: Development of medical guide wire of Cu-Al-Mn-base superelastic alloy with functionally graded characteristics.
abstract: A new type of medical guide wire with functionally graded hardness from the tip to the end was developed with the use of Cu-Al-Mn-based alloys. The superelasticity (SE) of the Cu-Al-Mn-based alloys in the tip is drastically improved by controlling the grain size, whereas the end of the wire is hardened using bainitic transformation by aging at around 200-400 degrees C. Therefore, the tip of the guide wire shows a superelasticity and its end has high stiffness. This guide wire with functionally graded characteristics shows excellent pushability and torquability, superior to that of the Ni-Ti guide wire.
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science, Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University, Aoba-yama 02, Sendai 980-8579, Japan.
authors.forename: Yuji
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sutou
authors.forename: Toshihiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Omori
authors.forename: Akihisa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Furukawa
authors.forename: Yukinori
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.forename: Ryosuke
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kainuma
authors.forename: Kiyoshi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Yamauchi
authors.forename: Shuzo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yamashita
authors.forename: Kiyohito
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ishida
mesh_terms: D000497:Alloys / Q000737:chemistry*; D000535:Aluminum / Q000737:chemistry*; D003300:Copper / Q000737:chemistry*; D004548:Elasticity; D008345:Manganese / Q000737:chemistry*; D017348:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning Transmission; D013314:Stress, Mechanical; D013696:Temperature; D019415:Torque
chemical_list: D000497:Alloys; D008345:Manganese; D003300:Copper; D000535:Aluminum