Alloying

Claim 1

THE METHOD COMPRISING THE STEPS OF PROVIDING A MALLEABLE ASSEMBLY OF A PLURALITY OF METALLIC LAYERS WITH MUTUALLY ADJACENT SURFACES OF SAID LAYERS IN SUFFICIENTLY INTIMATE CONTACT TO PREVENT THE FORMATION THEREON OF DIFFUSION-OBSTRUCTING CONTAMINANTS, EACH LAYER BEING FORMED OF ONE OF A PLURALITY OF ALLOYING CONSTITUENTS CAPABLE OF FORMING AN ALLOY BY SOLID STATE INTERDIFFUSION AND THE LAYERS OF EACH OF SAID CONSTITUENTS BEING INTERSPERSED WITH THOSE OF THE OTHER CONSTITUENTS; THE LAYERS OF AT LEAST ONE OF SAID ALLOYING CONSTITUENTS BEING MALLEABLE AND, WHILE SAID LAYERS ARE MAINTAINED IN SAID INTIMATE CONTACT, SQUEEZING THE ASSEMBLY TO REDUCE EACH OF SAID LAYERS TO A THICKNESS SUFFICIENTLY LESS THAN 0.001 OF AN INCH THAT AN ALLOY OF SAID CONSTITUENTS IS FORMED BY SUBJECTING THE ASSEMBLY FOR A RELATIVELY SHORT TIME INTERVAL TO A TEMPERATURE WITHIN THE RANGE EXTENDING FROM JUST BELOW THE RECRYSTALLIZATION TEMPERATURE OF THE PHASE HAVING THE LOWEST RECRYSTALLIZATION TEMPERATURE TO JUST BELOW THE MELTING POINT OF THE PHASE HAVING THE LOWEST MELTING POINT, SAID STEPS OF PROVIDING AND SQUEEZING SAID MALLEABLE ASSEMBLY BEING CARRIED OUT BY FIRST BONDING TO EACH OTHER AT LEAST ONE LAYER OF EACH OF SAID CONSTITUENTS TO FORM A SUB-ASSEMBLY AND THEN REPEATING, IN SUCCESSION, THE STEPS OF FIRST FOLDING SAID SUB-ASSEMBLY UPON ITSELF AND SUBSEQUENTLY BONDING THE MUTUALLY ADJACENT SURFACES OF THE FOLDED SUB-ASSEMBLY AND REDUCING THE THICKNESS OF EACH OF THE LAYERS.

Claim 2

THE METHOD COMPRISING THE STEPS OF PROVIDING A MALLEABLE ASSEMBLY OF A PLURALITY OF METALLIC LAYERS WITH MUTUALLY ADJACENT SURFACES OF SAID LAYERS IN SUFFICIENTLY INTIMATE CONTACT TO PREVENT THE FORMATION THEREON OF DIFFUSION-OBSTRUCTING CONTAMINANTS, EACH LAYER BEING FORMED OF ONE OF A PLURALITY OF ALLOYING CONSTITUENTS CAPABLE OF FORMING AN ALLOY BY SOLID STATE INTERDIFFUSION AND THE LAYERS OF EACH OF SAID CONSTITUENTS BEING INTERSPERSED WITH THOSE OF THE OTHER CONSTITUENTS; THE LAYERS OF AT LEAST ONE OF SAID ALLOYING CONSTITUENTS BEING MALLEABLE AND, WHILE SAID LAYERS ARE MAINTAINED IN SAID INTIMATE CONTACT, SQUEEZING THE ASSEMBLY TO REDUCE EACH OF SAID LAYERS TO A THICKNESS SUFFICIENTLY LESS THAN 0.001 OF AN INCH THAT AN ALLOY OF SAID CONSTITUENTS IS FORMED BY SUBJECTING THE ASSEMBLY FOR A RELATIVELY SHORT TIME INTERVAL TO A TEMPERATURE WITHIN THE RANGE EXTENDING FROM JUST BELOW THE RECRYSTALLIZATION TEMPERATURE OF THE PHASE HAVING THE LOWEST RECRYSTALLIZATION TEMPERATURE TO JUST BELOW THE MELTING POINT OF THE PHASE HAVING THE LOWEST MELTING POINT, SAID STEPS OF PROVIDING AND SQUEEZING SAID MALLEABLE ASSEMBLY BEING CARRIED OUT BY FIRST BONDING TO EACH OTHER AT LEAST ONE LAYER OF EACH OF SAID CONSTITUENTS TO FORM A SUB-ASSEMBLY AND THEN REPEATING, IN SUCCESSION, THE STEPS OF FIRST FOLDING SAID SUB-ASSEMBLY UPON ITSELF AND SUBSEQUENTLY BONDING THE MUTUALLY ADJACENT SURFACES OF THE FOLDED SUB-ASSEMBLY AND REDUCING THE THICKNESS OF EACH OF THE LAYERS.