Glassy and liquid metals, from microscopic to macroscopic dynamics

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Relaxation dynamics of metallic systems in the liquid/glass transition region

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Temporal evolution of the domain structure in a Poisson-Voronoi nucleation and growth transformation. Results for one and three dimensions

The distribution of spatial domain structures originated during one and three dimensional Poisson-Voronoi transformations are computed analytically extending the recently obtained re- sults for the two dimensional case. The presented method gives a full description of the developed microstructure and is valid for tessellations of any dimensionality. The temporal and spatial depen- dences of the domain structure are completely discriminated and separated, showing the existence of geometric configurations independent of time. A single computation of the probability distribution of these geometric configurations allows us to calculate the total free-boundary and size probabil- ity distributions at any desired time. The obtained results show full agreement with stochastic simulations and reproduce completely the previously existing partial results. A discussion about the potential applications of the method to the calculation of other geometrical properties and the characteristics of the final static structure leading to a gamma distribution of sizes is also presented

Relaxation dynamics of Fe55Cr10Mo14C15B6 metallic glass explored by mechanical spectroscopy and calorimetry measurements

In this work, the mechanical relaxation dynamics of Fe55Cr10Mo14C15B6 metallic glass is explored by mechanical spectroscopy. The temperature-dependent loss modulus E″(T) shows the features of β relaxation well below glass transition temperature Tg. This β relaxation can be well described in the framework of anelastic theory by a thermal activated process with activation energy of 165 kJ mol−1. Structural relaxation, also known as physical aging, has a large effect on the glass properties. The activation energy spectrum of structural relaxation is characterized by differential scanning calorimetry measuring the heat flow difference between as-quenched and relaxed states. The obtained energy spectrum is well described by a lognormal distribution with maximum probability activation energy of 176 kJ mol−1. The obtained activation energy of structural relaxation is similar to that of β relaxation observed from mechanical spectroscopy. Both values are also close to the Johari–Goldstein β relaxation estimated by the empirical rule Eβ = 26RTg.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Phonon dispersion relation of metallic glasses

Experimental data on the phase sound speed of metallic glasses show anomalies in the terahertz range, reflecting an underlying complex behavior of their phonon dispersion spectrum not yet explained. We determine the phonon dispersion curve of metallic glasses by means of massive molecular dynamics simulations, allowing us to obtain the low-q region behavior with unprecedented detail. Results confirm that the sound speed is constant below the THz range, down to the macroscopic limit. On the contrary, a hardening of the sound speed, more notable in the transverse case, is found in the THz range. This behavior is modeled in terms of a relaxation model. The model gives quantitative agreement and allows us to determine a new threshold frequency ¿h, at the end of the boson-peak region. Above ¿h the shear modulus increases dramatically, reflecting the end of the amorphous-like acoustic propagation region characterized by the excess density of vibrational states.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Tuning the memory dependence of vapour deposited metallic glasses

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Application of mechanically alloyed Mn-Al metallic particles to wastewater treatment: a comparative investigation of chemical and bacterial approaches to dye degradation in residual textile waters

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Effect of Si and B on the electrochemical behavior of FeCoNiCr-based high-entropy amorphous alloys

The ability to produce high-entropy alloys with an amorphous structure, so-called high-entropy metallic glasses (HEMGs), offers the possibility to produce new compositions with good mechanical properties and resistance to corrosion. In this study, corrosion behavior was studied in two HEMGs, FeCoNiCrB and FeCoNiCr(BSi). In both cases, the total amount of metalloid atoms was kept constant at 20 at.%. The electrochemical behavior of these alloys was studied by means of linear polarization resistance (LPR) measurements and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy in a 3 wt.% NaCl solution. The effect of corrosion was characterized by using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and the surface morphology was checked using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). The results show that samples with B but without Si exhibit better corrosion resistance due to its chemical homogeneity and lack of structural heterogeneity.Postprint (published version

Plastic deformation induced anisotropy in metallic glasses: A molecular dynamics study

The atomic structure of a Cu13Ni34Pd53 metallic glass was studied by molecular dynamics simulation at different temperatures along a shear deformation cycle. A simulation box of 1 million atoms was deformed in the x axis and then the original orthogonal shape was recovered. Directional pair distribution functions were computed in the coordinate planes and some significant directions along the shear deformation cycle. No anisotropy was found in the initial state, while post-deformation anisotropy was revealed by significant differences of the partial pair distribution functions. The analysis of atomic environments concluded that the remnant anisotropy remains constrained into the shear plane. Low temperature samples showed remnant anisotropy after the full shear sample, while close to the glass transition the anisotropy induced by the initial shear process is removed by the subsequent recovery process.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version