Stress dependent transforming behaviors and associated functional properties of a nano-precipitates induced strain glass alloy

• Nano-precipitates induced strain glass shows stress dependent transforming behaviors.
• Stress induces a transition from strain glass into martensite in the system.
• Nano-precipitates induced strain glass shows shape memory effect and superelasticity.
• Stress changes the transition route of the nano-precipitates induced strain glass.
• The system also shows stress changed damping effect and elastocaloric effect.

Strain glass is a frozen disordered state of local lattice strains (martensitic nano-domains). It is usually generated by doping sufficient point defects into conventional martensitic alloy. Recently, a new approach to generate strain glass was reported, that is to introduce many nano-sized particles/precipitates into normal martensitic alloy. It was shown that the transforming behaviors of point defects induced strain glass can be changed by external stress, which causes many functional properties. In this study, we investigated the stress dependent transforming behaviors and associated functional properties of the newly reported nano-precipitates induced strain glass Ti48.7Ni51.3. We found that the external stress induces a transition from strain glass state into martensitic state in this nano-precipitates induced strain glass, which leads to the shape memory effect and superelasticity. Moreover, the transition route of the system can also be greatly changed by external stress, resulting in the stress changed damping effect and elastocaloric effect.