Specific Heat in a Typical Metallic Glass Former

The specific heat in a typical Pd₄₀Ni₁₀Cu₃₀P₂₀ metallic glass forming system is investigated. It is found that the specific heat of the metallic liquid is around 4.7R (R is the gas constant) and that it is almost independent of temperature. The glass transition observed during cooling is accompanied by a decrease in the specific heat of 1.5R. The specific heat of the metallic glass is similar to that of its crystalline phases, contributed mainly from atomic vibrations. Combined with the results of the structural relaxation and diffusivities, we demonstrate an intrinsic connection between the atomic motion and the specific heat in the metallic glass-forming liquid. The results support the idea that glass transition is a process accompanied by the freezing of most of the atomic transitional motions in a metallic supercooled liquid during cooling.