Local structure and stability of amorphous CuFeZr alloys

Abstract The local structure and stability of amorphous Cu 60 − x Fe x Zr 40 were investigated by Mossbauer effect and differential scanning calorimetry measurements. The isomer shift decreased with increasing iron concentration for x x > 5. The activation energy of crystallization was 5.5–5.8 eV for x x > 5. These results show that copper atoms around an iron atom are substituted by iron atoms for x x > 5. From the comparison of Mossbauer spectrum parameters for amorphous Cu 59 Fe 1 Zr 40 and crystallized Cu 59 Fe 1 Zr 40 , it was shown that the average local structure of amorphous Cu 59 Fe 1 Zr 40 is similar to that of crystallized Cu 59 Fe 1 Zr 40 but that the former is more asymmetric than the latter. It was suggested that the asymmetry in local structure and the interatomic spacing are concerned with the stability of amorphous structure.