Cementite
= Cementite
{title2=$\mathrm{Fe_3C}$}
<Cementite> is iron carbide, $\mathrm{Fe_3C}$, a hard phase important in many steel microstructures. It can occur with ferrite in organized mixtures such as pearlite.
The amount, size, and distribution of cementite affect mechanical behavior because a carbide particle interacts differently with deformation than the surrounding iron-rich phase. Chemical composition and spatial arrangement must therefore be considered together.