Correlating local structure with inhomogeneous elastic deformation in a metallic glass

The elastic response of metallic glasses (MGs) is inhomogeneous, due to the wide variation of local structural arrangements. Here, we present molecular dynamics simulations on a one-million-atoms sample of a Cu64Zr36 model MG, correlating the atomic strain and non-affine displacement with short-range order. Cu atoms in full icosahedra experience less atomic relaxation and behave stiffer, while the rest of Cu atoms contribute more to anelasticity on the timescale of simulation. (C) 2012 American Institute of Physics. [http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4754121]