The first stages of the mechanical alloying process, fragmentation and welding, are analysed. In order to clarify the mechanisms of milling-induced diffusion, different interstitial solid solutions are examined. It is shown that diffusion of interstitial is mainly controlled by the stress field. In case of a substitutional solid solution, the mechanism of atomic transport is controlled by shear deformation. The consequence of the corresponding diffusion models are discussed. (C) 2004 Kluwer Academic Publishers.