Influence of hydrogen doping on the electrical resistivity of partially crystalline Zr76Ni24 metallic glass

The electrical resistivity of hydrogen doped partially crystalline (Zr76M24)(1-x)H-x metallic glasses has been measured in the temperature range from 1.5 up to 290 K for various dopant concentrations (x = 0, 0.018, 0.024, 0.043, 0.054). The effect of disorder on the electrical resistivity in the partially crystalline Zr76Ni24 metallic glass has been studied. The partially crystalline Zr76Ni24 metallic glass has a high room-temperature resistivity (136 mu Omega cm) and becomes superconducting below 3.49 K. The temperature coefficient of the electrical resistivity, (TCR), in the hydrogen doped partially crystalline Zr76Ni24 samples, shows a nonmonotonic behavior. Doping the samples with hydrogen increases disorder and produces a small positive anomaly in the resistivity below about 100 K leading to a maximum in the resistivity before curve resumes a monotonic decrease with increasing temperature. The temperature dependence of the electrical resistivity has been described by using theoretical models of weak-localization, electron-electron interaction and electron-phonon scattering in disordered three-dimensional conductors. In the partially crystalline Zr76Ni24 metallic glass, hydrogen reduces the electronic density of states at the Fermi level, N(E-F), leading to a decrease in conductivity and suppression of the superconducting transition temperature, T-c, for hydrogen level up to x = 0.043 whereas for x = 0.054, the T-c and N(E-F) are enhanced. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.