What Determines the Formation of Metallic Glasses?

[darkelf]

Hello,

Having a spot of bother here trying to understand the glass formation in metallic glasses. Could anyone please explain or point me to a source that explains in details structure and kinetics in glass formation?

Thanks

 

[Astronuc]

Hello,

Having a spot of bother here trying to understand the glass formation in metallic glasses. Could anyone please explain or point me to a source that explains in details structure and kinetics in glass formation?

Thanks

Basically glasses are amorphous, while ceramics and metals have a regular crystalline (lattice) structure or regular 3D order of atoms that form plane with a 'regular' and repeated geometry.

The way to make an amorphous material is to cool (chill) it rapidly (rapid solidification) before the atoms can establish a crystalline (ordered) structure. One method is to allow the liquid alloy or melt to cool on a chill block (cylinder) which rotates beneath the melt stream. A ribbon of metglass or amorphous metal can be formed in this way.

Cooling rates are on the order of 100 K/s to 1000 K/s.

Here's some more information - Mystery Of Metallic Glass Is Cracked By Johns Hopkins Engineers
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/01/060126190325.htm

https://jshare.johnshopkins.edu/thufnag1/Public_html/metallicglass.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amorphous_metal

See also - http://metglas.com/tech/index.htm