Abstract:
Atomic structure evolution and diffusivity during the cooling of Zr
50Cu
50 metallic liquid are studied by molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. Based on the theory that free volume is equal to the volume difference between the amorphous materials and their crystalline counterpart, a new method of annihilating rate of free volume has been developed and applied to predict the critical microscopic glass transition temperature. The predicted critical temperature
Tc was 969.5K, which is close to the MCT(mode-coupling theory) value of 978.4K, and the caloric glass transition temperature
Tg was 731K, which is also close to the value of 725K determined from the curve of average atomic volume with temperature. Without calculation of diffusion coefficients at a serial of specified temperatures, the developed method is more convenient than former methods to calculate
Tc and
Tg.