On the latest stage of transformation from nanocrystalline to amorphous phases during ARB: Simulation and experiment

By applying a simple room temperature accumulative roll bonding (ARB) process, the multilayered Zr and Ni elemental foils can be mixed and transformed into nanocrystalline and eventually amorphous bulk materials. The latest stage of the transformation from the nanocrystalline elemental phase measuring ∼2 nm to the amorphous alloying phase is examined, using high resolution transmission electron microscopy and molecular dynamics simulation. The gradual evolutions of atom mixing of the binary Zr–Ni alloy, as well as the final radial distribution function and the nearest neighboring distance, are traced experimentally and numerically.