Influence of oxygen on the devitrification of Zr–Ti–Nb–Cu–Ni–Al metallic glasses

The effect of oxygen on the crystallization behavior of melt-spun Zr57Ti8Nb2.5Cu13.9Ni11.1Al7.5 (numbers indicate at.%) glassy ribbons has been investigated. With increasing oxygen content the size of the quasicrystals, the phase formed in the first stage of the crystallization process, decreases. In addition, with increasing amount of oxygen the glass transition and the crystallization temperature corresponding to the formation of the quasicrystals are shifted to higher values, indicating that oxygen has a positive effect on the thermal stability of the glass/supercooled liquid against (quasi)crystallization. A possible explanation for this behavior is linked with a variation in the crystallization behavior due to a change of the composition of the glassy phase.