LaGa-based bulk metallic glasses

We report the formation of La Ga-based bulk metallic glasses. Ternary La–Ga–Cu glassy rods of 2–3 mm in diameter can be easily formed in a wide composition range by the conventional copper mold casting method. With minor addition of extra elements such as Co, Ni, Fe, Nb, Y, and Zr, the critical diameter of the full glassy rods of the La–Ga–Cu matrix can be markedly enhanced to at least 5 mm. The characteristics and properties of these new La Ga-based bulk metallic glasses with excellent glass formation ability and low glass transition temperature are model systems for fundamental issues investigation and could have some potential applications in micromachining field.     

小角X射线散射表征非晶合金纳米尺度结构非均匀

表征纳米尺度结构非均匀对于理解非晶合金的变形、弛豫等动力学行为至关重要.受时空尺度限制,非晶合金纳米尺度结构非均匀的实验表征具有很大的挑战性.本文针对一种典型的锆基非晶合金,开展了同步辐射小角X射线散射原位拉伸实验.通过对散射曲线的定量分析,揭示了非晶合金在纳米尺度的非均匀结构图像.首先,Porod散射曲线呈现正偏离行为,表明非晶合金属于非理想两相散射体系,两相界面弥散且任一相内都存在电子密度涨落.基于散射曲线的Guinier定律分析,进一步揭示非晶合金中散射体形状远偏离球形,其特征尺度主要分布在0.8—1.6 nm之间,且在弹性变形阶段几乎不变.最后,通过Debye相关函数分析,发现这些纳米尺度散射体仅在1 nm之内存在强关联,符合非晶合金短程有序、长程无序的结构特征.研究结果表明非晶合金中存在具有复杂空间分布的纳米尺度非均匀结构.