Quantitative analysis of structure evolution of Zr-Cu amorphous alloys caused by cooling rates based on atomic bond proportion

The changes in the atomic structure of Zr-Cu amorphous alloys caused by different cooling rates were studied by X-ray diffraction synchrotron radiation and molecular dynamic calculation. Results show that the content of high-strength Zr-Cu bonds increases, whereas those of Zr-Zr and Cu-Cu bonds decrease as the cooling rate decreases. The increase of high-strength atomic bonds leads to the increase of Young's modulus of Zr-Cu amorphous alloys. The lower cooling rate facilitates the formation of a more efficient atomic packing model, suggesting that more atomic bonds form in the system without increasing the number of atoms. The effect of cooling rate on the atomic structure and Young's modulus of Zr-Cu amorphous alloys with different components is proportional to the content of Zr-Cu bonds in the system as a whole.