Improvement of the plasticity of bulk amorphous alloys via a low-angle shear-deforming process

This study examined the fundamental issue of whether an elastic shear stress imposed on an amorphous alloy causes structural changes during the process of quasistatic loading. A shear-deforming device that can deliver elastic shear stress to the workpieces was designed to investigate the effect of excess free volume generated by elastic shear stress on the mechanical properties of bulk amorphous alloys. With repeated application of elastic shear stress, the plasticity of the shear-deformed amorphous alloys increased, while the yield strength decreased. These behaviors were analyzed from the perspective of the structural changes associated with the viscoelastic nature of amorphous alloys.