The structure and mechanical properties of amorphous and nanocrystalline Fe-Si-B alloys

This article describes the results of investigations of the microstructure of failure surfaces and the mechanism of deformation of an amorphous Fe80Si11B9 alloy, nanocrystallized with the use of Nd:YAG pulsed laser heating. The research included 'in situ' tensile testing in a scanning electron microscope. Mechanical properties were also measured on an Instron-type machine for the amorphous and nanocrystalline alloys. The mechanical tensile tests performed on the amorphous and nanocrystalline samples showed a ductile fracture surface with very high fracture stress. Detailed observations of the flow deformation and fractures revealed the relationship between the quenched-in crystalline and mechanical behaviour.