Mechanical properties and microstructure of as-cast AA7050 processed by equal channel angular pressing combined with inter-pass aging treatment

• ECAP combined with inter-pass aging promotes bimodal η′ precipitates and high dislocation densities in AA7050. • Grain size refines to 4.8 μm and dislocation density increases to 1.24×10^15 m−2 via precipitate pinning. • Precipitation, fine-grain, and dislocation strengthening synergistically yield UTS ~610 MPa and YS ~565 MPa. • Ductility is maintained through coordinated grain boundary sliding and uniform, fine second-phase dispersion.