Metallic glasses: Notch-insensitive materials

The notch tensile behavior of Zr-based bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) is investigated and compared with that of crystalline metals and ceramics. It is found that the tensile strength of the studied BMGs is insensitive to notches, and much better than that of conventional brittle materials. Moreover, notched BMGs exhibit enhanced plastic deformation ability with the formation of shear band zones, which is distinctively different from traditional metals and ceramics, while it is consistent with the nearly zero tensile plastic elongation but high toughness of BMGs.