Thermodynamic evidence for cluster ordering in Cu46Zr42Al7Y5 ribbons during glass transition

This work investigated the response of Cu46Zr42Al7Y5 glass ribbons to both dynamic and static heating using differential scanning calorimeter (DSC). The DSC curve manifests three exothermic responses to dynamic heating, among which the first and the third one are the signatures of the normal sub-Tg (Tg, glass transition temperature) relaxation and the crystallization process, respectively. The second one is attributed to a partial overlap between the endothermic response to the glass transition and the exothermic response to the formation of ordered clusters. The cluster ordering, which begins at the final stage of glass transition, has been verified by the differences in the activation energy of the sub-Tg relaxation, the cluster ordering and primary crystallization for both the as-spun and annealed ribbons. The cluster ordering could be driven by the large difference between the Zr–Y mixing enthalpy and the Al–Y (or Cu–Y) mixing enthalpy. The findings contribute to distinguishing between phase separation and clusters motion scenarios.