Understanding the Effect of Oxygen on the Glass-Forming Ability of Zr55Cu55Al9Be9 Bulk Metallic Glass by ab initio Molecular Dynamics Simulations

Cheng Wang, Shun Li Shang, Jiang You, Brandon Bocklund, Yi Wang, Hui Yuan Wang, Zi Kui Liu

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

10 Scopus citations

Abstract

Oxygen (O) is an inevitable impurity in bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) and its influence over the glass-forming ability (GFA) of BMGs is a longstanding controversy. The present ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulations indicate that the GFA decreases upon introducing 0.78 at. pct O in the amorphous Zr55Cu55Al9Be9 (at. pct), while examining the evolution of atomic configurations and kinetic properties in BMGs. This study includes a comprehensive analysis using pair correlation function (PCF), bond pair analysis (BPA), and Voronoi polyhedra construction. It is concluded that the incorporation of O leads to a decline in the closely packed icosahedral polyhedrons, where the atom O is coordinated with Be and Zr in the first nearest shell to form the O-centered clusters with enhanced ordering. Mean square displacement (MSD) analysis also shows that the trace O could induce remarkable acceleration of atomic mobility, therefore increasing crystallization tendency of the Zr55Cu55Al9Be9 alloy. The present results illuminate the role of O in the metallic glass-forming process and reveal the underlying role of O in the GFA of the Zr-Cu amorphous alloys.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)2501-2511
Number of pages11
JournalMetallurgical and Materials Transactions A: Physical Metallurgy and Materials Science
Volume52
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 2021

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Condensed Matter Physics
  • Mechanics of Materials
  • Metals and Alloys

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