Glass forming ability and properties of Zr/Nb-based bulk metallic glasses

Zr/Nb-based bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) with excellent glass forming ability (GFA) and high thermal stability were obtained by water quenching method. The GFA of the alloys is sensitive to the Fe addition, and the highest GFA is achieved at 8 at% of Fe addition. It is found that dr defined by the difference between the onset temperature of the first crystallization event T-x and the glass transition temperature T-g (DeltaT = T-x - T-g) is more effective than T-rg (T-rg = T-g/T-m T-m, melting temperature) to reflect the GFA of the Zr/Nb-based BMGs. The elastic properties of the alloys are investigated by ultrasonic measurements.