A new Pr-based bulk metallic glass and its properties

Abstract

A new rare-earth Pr-based bulk metallic glass (BMG) is obtained in the shape of rod up to 5 mm in diameter by die cast. Unlike other rare-earth based BMGs, it exhibits a distinct glass transition, Tg=409K,the lowest glass transition temperature among the known BMGs, a large and stable supercooled liquid region and paramagnetic property. The glass transition as well as its kinetic nature and the fragility parameters m of the BMG have been studied. The BMG offers an ideal model to investigate the nature of glass transition as well as the relaxation and nucleation with a large experimentally accessible time and temperature window at very low temperature region.