The increasing demand for multi-material components in advanced engineering systems, particularly in thermal management, power generation, and electronic industries, necessitates the development of reliable strategies for joining stainless steel to copper. Wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) has emerged as a promising approach for joining dissimilar metals by enabling controlled heat input, compositional grading, and layer-by-layer fabrication. In the present study, a multilayer deposition strategy was employed to join AISI 304 stainless steel to pure copper using WAAM through a cold metal transfer (CMT) mode. Detailed microstructural characterization using optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and electron backscatter diffraction revealed the formation of a defect-free joint facilitated by a diffusion-driven bonding, exhibiting gradual compositional transition from coarse columnar SS304 grains to comparatively fine equiaxed Cu grains across the interface. Significant grain evolution without any preferred crystallographic orientation was observed on the Cu side, with greater diffusion depth of SS304 into Cu. Microhardness mapping indicated that the interfacial properties were governed by the harder SS304 phase. The hardness values across the interface varied between 109 and 187 HV, indicating a gradual transition from the softer Cu region to the stronger SS304 side. The SS304-Cu bimetallic joint exhibited a UTS of 290 MPa and 0.2% YS of 175 MPa, outperforming WAAM-deposited pure Cu and demonstrating failure in the Cu region rather than at the interface. Radiographic examination confirmed minimal porosity within acceptable limits, demonstrating that defect-free and reliable SS304-Cu joints can be systematically achieved through CMT-based WAAM.
