The Open Macromolecules Journal

2010, 4 : 37-43
Published online 2010 December 21. DOI: 10.2174/1874343901004010037
Publisher ID: TOMACROJ-4-37

Similarities and Differences between the Glass Forming Mechanism in Polymers and Metallic Liquids

A. Lovas , L. Novák , J. Kováč and S. Balla
Inst. of Exp. Physics, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Watsonova 47, 040 01 Košice, Slovak Republic.

ABSTRACT

Survey of categorization of glass forming mechanisms in liquids based on the known principles reported in the literature is given. The metallic glass-forming liquids can be divided into two types – strong (with high glass forming ability) and fragile (with low glass forming ability). While the bulk amorphous alloys formed from strong liquids do not exhibit sensitivity to low temperature relaxation near as well as below room temperature, the glasses formed from fragile liquids contain mobile “hot points” that are active during low temperature or thermo-elastic treatments. Based on this interpretation, the structural imprints induced by treatments at liquid nitrogen (LN) temperature as well as by the absorption of hydrogen (H-absorption) are explained.

Keywords:

Glass-forming ability, strong and fragile liquids, relaxation at low and high temperatures, glass transition (T).