Austenite

Austenite is the face-centered cubic crystal form of iron that dissolves substantial carbon. It is stable at high temperatures in ordinary steels and can persist at room temperature in some alloyed steels.

Face-centered cubic: A crystal structure with atoms at each cube corner and at each face center. Austenite’s iron atoms occupy this arrangement, which accommodates more carbon than ferrite.
Stainless steel: Steel containing enough chromium to resist corrosion through formation of a protective surface film. Many stainless grades retain austenite because nickel or other alloying elements stabilize it.
Ferrite: A body-centered cubic form of iron that dissolves little carbon at equilibrium. Compared with ferrite, austenite accommodates far more carbon in solid solution.
Retained austenite: Austenite that remains after cooling below the temperature at which it would ordinarily transform. It is the room-temperature form central to austenitic and transformation-assisted steels.
Iron–carbon phase diagram: A map of equilibrium phases in iron–carbon alloys across temperature and composition. It shows the temperature and carbon conditions under which austenite forms.
Austenitic stainless steel: A stainless-steel family whose room-temperature structure is predominantly austenitic. Its corrosion resistance, formability, and generally nonmagnetic condition arise partly from stable austenite.
Cementite: An iron carbide with the chemical formula Fe₃C, common in steel microstructures. Carbon rejected during austenite decomposition can combine with iron to form cementite.
Ausferrite: A microstructure of acicular ferrite and carbon-enriched austenite formed by austempering. It demonstrates how heat treatment can preserve austenite within a useful composite structure.
Martensite: A hard, supersaturated iron-based phase formed by diffusionless transformation from austenite. Rapid cooling can transform austenite directly into this hard phase.
Hadfield steel: A high-manganese steel known for combining austenitic structure with strong work hardening. Its retained austenite transforms and hardens under severe impact and abrasion.

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