Metallic glasses

MAY 01, 1975

Many applications are likely for these materials that exhibit the favorable properties of metals and the manufacturing and economic advantages of conventional glasses.

DOI: 10.1063/1.3068966

John J. Gilman

A piece of ordinary glass is a silicate material that did not crystallize when cooled from its liquid state to ambient temperature. Other substances, especially those whose molecules tend to polymerize, can also be cooled to ambient temperatures without crystallization. With metals, however, this could not be done until rather recently, and doing it continuously to make materials of interest to engineering is a very recent development. Metal alloys that can be quenched without crystallization form metallic glasses—solids with unusual, and in some cases outstanding, physical properties. Because their atoms are bound together by long‐range metallic bonding, these glasses are malleable and good electrical conductors (comparable to stainless steels), unlike covalently bonded silicate glasses.

This article is only available in PDF format

References

1. W. Klement, R. H. Willens, P. Duwez, Nature 187, 869 (1960).https://doi.org/NATUAS
2. H. Jones, Rep. Prog. Phys. 36, 1425 (1973).https://doi.org/RPPHAG
3. D. Turnbull, Jour. de Phys. 35, Colloque 4, pages 1–10 (1974).
4. H. S. Chen, Acta Met. 22, 897 (1974).https://doi.org/AMETAR
5. In Chem. and Eng. News, page 24, 19 November 1973;
US Patent ♯3 845 805, November 1974.
6. D. E. Polk, Scripta Met. 4, 117 (1970).https://doi.org/SCRMBU
7. G. S. Cargill, R. W. Cochrane, J. Physique Colloque ♯4, Suppl. ♯5, 35, C4‐269 (1974).
8. J. F. Sadoc, J. Dixmier, A. Guinier, J. Non‐Cryst. Sol. 12, 46 (1973).https://doi.org/JNCSBJ
9. M. Dutoit, H. S. Chen, Appl. Phys. Lett. 23, 357 (1973).https://doi.org/APPLAB
10. B. S. Berry, W. C. Pritchett, J. Appl. Phys. 44, 3122 (1973).https://doi.org/JAPIAU
11. C. A. Pampillo, H. S. Chen, Mat. Sci. and Eng. 13, 181 (1974).https://doi.org/MSCEAA
12. C. A. Pampillo, Scripta Met. 6, 915 (1972).https://doi.org/SCRMBU
13. J. J. Gilman, J. Appl. Phys. 44, 675 (1973).https://doi.org/JAPIAU
14. R. Maddin, T. Masumoto, Mat. Sci. and Eng. 9, 153 (1972).https://doi.org/MSCEAA
15. H. J. Leamy, H. S. Chen, T. T. Wang, Met. Trans. 3, 699 (1972).https://doi.org/MTGTBF
16. C. C. Tsuei, P. Duwez, J. Appl. Phys. 37, 435 (1966).https://doi.org/JAPIAU
17. P. Duwez, S. C. H. Lin, J. Appl. Phys. 38, 4096 (1967).https://doi.org/JAPIAU
18. A. K. Sinha, J. Appl. Phys. 42, 338 (1971).https://doi.org/JAPIAU
19. C. C. Tsuei, R. Hasegawa, Sol. St. Comm. 7, 1581 (1969).https://doi.org/SSCOA4
20. G. S. Cargill III, 20th Ann. Conf. Mag. and Mag. Mat., San Francisco, December 1974, to be published.
21. T. Egami, P. J. Flanders, C. D. Graham, Jr, Appl. Phys. Lett. 26, 128 (1975).https://doi.org/APPLAB
22. R. C. Sherwood, E. M. Gyorgy, H. S. Chen, S. D. Ferris, G. Norman, H. J. Leamy, 20th Ann. Conf. Mag. and Mag. Mat., San Francisco, December 1974, to be published.

More about the Authors

John J. Gilman. Director, Materials Research Center, Allied Chemical, Morristown, New Jersey.