Plasticity enhancement of high-entropy bulk metallic glasses by electroless plating with Ni-P amorphous films

Using chemical plating, Ni-P films were successfully coated on Ti20Zr20Hf20Be20Cu20 high-entropy bulk metallic glasses (HE-BMGs), and presented an enhancive adhesion as well as a higher deposition rate on account of the chemical pretreatment before electroless plating. With the coating, the plastic strain of the HE-BMGs is increased up to 5.7%, which is 3.2 times of 1.8% of the bare pillars. It shows that the adhesive coating with a thickness of 10 µm leads to a plasticity enhancement of HE-BMGs via the dispersive impact of coating on the concentrated stress. In addition, the coating leads to more homogeneous regions where shear banding may take place and offers a preventible action for the rapid propagation of shear bands.