Metallic glass based composites with precise tunable thermal expansion

Abstract

Thermal expansion properties of materials are of fundamental interest and regulation of thermal expansion is significant for practical applications, but remains a challenge. We developed a moderate and efficient route for the preparation of metallic glass matrix composites, enabling precise tuning of thermal expansion properties over a wide range. Admixtures with dissimilar thermal expansion properties were successfully bonded to metallic glasses because of the unique thermoplasticity. The prepared composites achieve continuous regulation of the coefficient of thermal expansion over a broad range (9.6 ppm/K to 34 ppm/K), and high precision (0.065 ppm/K corresponds to one percent of the volume) can be realized. In addition, composites with nearly zero thermal expansion properties (average 0.19 ppm/K) in the wide temperature region (223 K to 473 K) were successfully prepared. Our approach provides a flexible and moderate pathway to achieve precise customization thermal expansion properties, promising a shift from laborious searching to precise tailoring of materials.