Direct TEM Observation of Phase Separation and Crystallization in Cu45Zr45Ag10 Metallic Glass

Hui Wang, Shang-Gang Xiao, Tao Zhang, Qiang Xu, Zeng-Qian Liu, Meng-Yue Wu, Frans Tichelaar, Henny Zandbergen

Fig. 6 Scheme of crystallization mechanism of Cu45Zr45Ag10 metallic glass. There are four typical steps: a phase separation into Ag-rich nanospheres (marked by blue dots) within 5 nm via nucleation and growth mode at 200 °C, b Ag-rich nanospheres aggregation in a manner similar to grain boundary segregation in crystalline alloys at 380 °C, c Cu-rich nanocrystals (marked by red rectangles) precipitated quickly from the remaining Cu-rich amorphous matrix at 380 °C, d crystallization and growth of Ag-rich nanospheres, forming a network-like structure, and thus retard the further coarsening of Cu-rich crystals