Product miniaturization is a trend for facilitating product usage, enabling product functions to be implemented in microscale geometries, and aimed at reducing product weight, volume, cost and pollution. Driven by ongoing miniaturization in diverse areas including medical devices, precision equipment, communication devices, micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) and microsystems technology (MST), the demands for micro metallic products have increased tremendously. Such a trend requires development of advanced micromanufacturing technology of metallic materials for producing high-quality micro metallic products that possess excellent dimensional tolerances, required mechanical properties and improved surface quality. Micromanufacturing differs from conventional manufacturing technology in terms of materials, processes, tools, and machines and equipment, due to the miniaturization nature of the whole micromanufacturing system, which challenges the rapid development of micromanufacturing technology. Against such a background, the Special Issue “Micromanufacturing of Metallic Materials” was proposed to present the recent developments of micromanufacturing technologies of metallic materials. The papers collected in the Special Issue include research articles, literature review and technical notes, which have been highlighted in this editorial.

Al-Fe alloys are attractive for applications at temperatures beyond those normally associated with the conventional aluminum alloys. Under proper solidification condition, a full eutectic microstructure can be generated in Al-Fe alloys at Fe concentration well in excess of the eutectic composition of 1.8 wt.% Fe. The microstructure in this case is characterized by the metastable regular eutectic Al-Al6Fe fibers of nano-scale in diameter, instead of the equilibrium eutectic Al-Al3Fe phase. In this study, the microstructure and mechanical properties of the Al-3Fe alloy with metastable Al6Fe particles deformed by equal channel angular extrusion were investigated. Severe plastic deformation results in a microstructure consisting of submicron equiaxed Al grains with a uniform distribution of submicron Al6Fe particles on the grain boundaries. The room temperature tensile properties of the alloy with this microstructure will be presented.

Aging behavior of wrought Al-12.7Si-0.7 Mg alloy was investigated during isothermal aging at 180 °C. Two aging peaks were observed at 3 h and 8 h, respectively. To examine precipitate evolution during aging, the alloy’s microstructure in different aging states was investigated by regular and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (TEM and HRTEM). The results revealed that the variation of mechanical properties is attributed to the combining effect of Si particles, the grain boundary, and the character of precipitates. The predominant precipitates’ type, size, and volume fraction vary as aging time increases.