Binary Cu--Zr Bulk Metallic Glasses

We report that bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) can be produced up to 2 mm by a copper mould casting in Cu_xZr_1-x binary alloy with a wide glass forming composition range (45 < x < 60 at.%). We find that the formation mechanism for the binary Cu-Zr binary BMG-forming alloy is obviously different from that of the intensively studied multicomponent BMGs. Our results demonstrate that the criteria for the multicomponent alloys with composition near deep eutectic and strong liquid behaviour are no longer the major concern for designing BMGs.