Recently, the research team led by Prof. Jiang Jianzhong from the School of Advanced Materials and New Energy at Fuyao University of Science and Technology published a paper entitled Unveiling the Structural Origins of Dynamic Diversity in Pd-Based Metallic Glasses in the prestigious international journal Small. This study reports two palladium-based metallic glasses, Pd–Cu–P and Pd–Ni–P, exhibiting distinctly different β-relaxation behaviors, and reveals the structural origins of these differences using advanced techniques including X-ray photon correlation spectroscopy (XPCS), X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS), and first-principles calculations. Establishing the correlation between atomic dynamics and microstructure provides a new approach to understanding the structural origins of diverse dynamic behaviors during aging in disordered materials.

This study uses Pd₄₀Cu₄₀P₂₀ and Pd₄₀Ni₄₀P₂₀ metallic glasses as model systems to investigate the structural origins of their β-relaxation behavior. It is found that complex and selective bonding between small metalloid atoms and large metal atoms can significantly modify atomic packing and thus govern atomic dynamic behavior. These findings provide new insights into the structure–dynamics relationship in metallic glasses.

By combining dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), high-energy synchrotron XPCS, extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS), and first-principles calculations, the team systematically investigated the structure–dynamics correlation in Pd₄₀Cu₄₀P₂₀ and Pd₄₀Ni₄₀P₂₀ metallic glasses, offering new perspectives for understanding the structure–dynamics relationship.

Paper link: https://doi.org/10.1002/smll.202309331