Elastic Properties and Glass Forming Ability of the Zr50Cu40Ag10 Metallic Alloy

Abstract

The elastic properties of the Zr50Cu40Ag10 metallic alloy, such as the bulk modulus B, the shear modulus G, the Young’s modulus E and the Poisson’s ratio σ, are investigated by molecular dynamics simulation in the temperature range T=250–2000 K and at an external pressure of p=1.0 bar. It is shown that the liquid–glass transition is accompanied by a considerable increase in the shear modulus G and the Young’s modulus E (by more than 50%). The temperature dependence of the Poisson’s ratio exhibits a sharp fall from typical values for metals of approximately 0.32–0.33 to low values (close to zero), which are characteristic for brittle bulk metallic glasses. Non-monotonic temperature dependence of the longitudinal and transverse sound velocity near the liquid-glass transition is also observed. The glass forming ability of the alloy is evaluated in terms of the fragility index m. Its value is m≈64 for the Zr50Cu40Ag10 metallic glass, which is in a good agreement with the experimental data for the Zr-based metallic glasses.