Effects of a minor addition of Si and/or Sn on formation and mechanical properties of Cu–Zr–Ti bulk metallic glass

Effects of the addition of a small amount of Sn and/or Si on glass-forming ability and mechanical properties of Cu50Zr42.5Ti7.5 (at.%) bulk metallic glass were studied. The critical diameter for glass formation is 5 mm for Cu50Zr42.5Ti7.5 alloy, and increases to 6 mm for (Cu0.5Zr0.425Ti0.075)99Sn1 and (Cu0.5Zr0.425Ti0.075)99Si1 alloys and 7 mm for (Cu0.5Zr0.425Ti0.075)98.8Sn0.6Si0.6. In uniaxial compression, (Cu0.5Zr0.425Ti0.075)99Sn1 and (Cu0.5Zr0.425Ti0.075)98.8Sn0.6Si0.6 bulk metallic glasses exhibit large plasticity of 8% and 5.3%, respectively, while the limited plasticity of 0.5% and 0.6% is obtained for Cu50Zr42.5Ti7.5 and (Cu0.5Zr0.425Ti0.075)99Si1 bulk metallic glasses.