Correlation between local structure and dynamic heterogeneity in a metallic glass-forming liquid

• A new parameter is proposed to describe local atomic packing.
• The new parameter is closely correlated with potential energy.
• Close correlation between atomic structure and dynamic propensities is found.

Dynamic heterogeneity as one of the most important properties in supercooled liquids has been found for several decades. However, its structural origin remains open for many systems. Here, we propose a new structural parameter to characterize local atomic packing in metallic liquids. It is found that the new parameter in a simulated metallic glass-forming liquid is closely correlated with potential energy and atomic mobility. It also exhibits significant spatial heterogeneities and these structural fluctuations show close correlation with the spatial distribution of the long-time dynamic propensities. Therefore, our results provide a direct evidence of the correlation between atomic structure and dynamical heterogeneity. The new structural parameter might be used to reflect the structural “defect” in metallic liquids and glasses and further play an important role to uncover the structure-property relationship in these disordered systems.

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