MSE Seminar: David Riegner, Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Metallic Glass Formation and Structure

Abstract

Metallic glasses, a class of metal alloys which lack a periodic crystal structure, exhibit exceptional combinations of not accessible by other classes of materials. In spite of promise for widespread application, metallic glasses are difficult to synthesize and understanding of their structure and behavior is limited compared to crystalline alloys. There is no predictive criterion for determining if a particular alloy is capable of forming glass. Numerous glass-forming alloys have been reported, spanning a wide range of possible properties largely through trial and error. Engineering of these materials is difficult, as the connection between atomic structure and macroscopic behavior not sufficiently developed to exploit particular behaviors in any intentional capacity. Using Molecular Dynamics simulations, three metallic glass-forming systems, Al-La, Cu-Zr and Cu-Ti-Zr were simulated and compared, connecting structure to properties and illuminating consistencies in glass-forming behavior between the systems.