Structural arrest in multicomponent glass-forming Zr-melts

• Applicants: Professor Dr. Franz Faupel; Professor Dr. Andreas Meyer
• Subject Area: Thermodynamics and Kinetics as well as Properties of Phases and Microstructure of Materials
• Term: from 2011 to 2016
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 191237134

Recently, there is again great interest in glasses and the glass transition. Particularly metallic glassforming alloys are currently among the most actively studied metallic materials. While earlier investigations have focused on the glassy range and the dynamics around Tc of the mode coupling theory, recent work of the applicants has demonstrated that in multicomponent Zr alloys, in contrast to simple binary systems, the onset of structural arrest already starts in the equilibrium melt far above Tc. Combining radiotracer measurements, quasi-elastic neutron scattering, and molecular dynamics simulations, the present project aims at identifying the key parameters determining the onset of structural arrest in multicomponent alloys far above Tc. In particular, the formation of an energy landscape, of dynamic heterogeneity and of a slow subsystem will be addressed. The latter was recently shown to be curucial in multi component systems by the applicants [1]. A key point will be the influence of the alloy complexity on these processes. Specifically, it will be investigated, how the processes are affected by atomic size, packing fraction, and chemical interactions.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Participating Person: Professor Dr. Klaus Rätzke