Evolution of loops in ductile Zr-based bulk metallic glass during plastic deformation

Normally, monolithic bulk metallic glasses exhibit poor ductility (<1%) at room temperature through inhomogeneous plastic deformation. only a few compositions are found so far showing some ductility but their deformation mechanism is still poorly understood. In this letter, a Zr-based bulk metallic glass is presented showing the ductility of 12%. It was observed that loops of material flow are created on shear plane in the initial stages of deformation while river pattern emerges out of these loops in the later stages of deformation. It was also investigated that the intersectioning of shear bands leads to the ductile behavior as well as irregular serrated behavior in stress-strain curve for the alloy. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.