Dynamic evolution of nanoscale shear bands in a bulk-metallic glass

Dynamic shear-band-evolution processes in a bulk-metallic glass (BMG), an emerging class of materials, were captured by a state-of-the-art, high-speed, infrared camera. Many shear bands initiated, propagated, and arrested before the final fracture in tension, each with decreasing temperature, and shear-strain profiles. A free-volume-exhaustion mechanism was proposed to explain the phenomena. The results contribute to understanding and improving the limited ductility of BMGs, which otherwise have superior mechanical properties.