Characterization of Nanoscale Mechanical Heterogeneity in a Metallic Glass by Dynamic Force Microscopy
Description
We report nano-scale mechanical heterogeneity of a metallic glass characterized by dynamic atomic force microscopy. Apparent energy dissipation with the variation of ~12%, originating from non-uniform distribution of local viscoelasticity, was characterized. The correlation length of heterogeneous viscoelasticity was measured to be ~2.5{\pm}0.3 nm, which is well consistent with the dimension of shear transformation zones for plastic flow. This study provides the first experimental observation on the nano-scale mechanical heterogeneity in a metallic glass, and may fill the gap between atomic models and the macroscopic properties of metallic glasses.
Journal
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- Physical Review Letters
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Physical Review Letters 106 (12), 125504-, 2011-03-23
American Physical Society (APS)