Plasticity of a scandium-based nanoglass

The mechanical properties of a Sc75Fe25 nanoglass and monolithic metallic glass (MG) with identical chemical composition were investigated by means of nanoindentation tests and quantitative in situ compression tests and tensile tests in a transmission electron microscope. The nanoglass exhibits excellent plastic deformation ability relative to the monolithic MG. It is particularly interesting to find that the 400 nm Sc75Fe25 nanoglass exhibits a 15% plastic strain under uniaxial tension. Such a nearly uniform tensile plasticity is unprecedented among MGs of similar sample sizes. The enhanced plasticity of the nanoglass can be attributed to its unique microstructure.