Nuclear forward scattering analysis of crystallization processes in weakly magnetic metallic glasses

Abstract

Nuclear forward scattering (NFS) is a suitable experimental technique to study the crystallization processes within amorphous alloys. It enables simultaneous investigation of both the structural arrangement and the associated hyperfine interactions. The presence of nanocrystals buried in amorphous matrix is usually manifested via their ferromagnetic exchange interactions. In weakly magnetic metallic glasses the onset of the phase transformation from amorphous to nanocrystalline state is not accompanied by occurrence of well distinguished magnetic hyperfine interactions due to the presence of newly formed nanocrystals. Here, we present evaluation of NFS time spectra acquired in-situ during the crystallization of weakly magnetic metallic glass with a composition of Fe75Mo8Cu1B16. We determine the onset of crystallization from the change in spectral line-widths of the NFS time spectra calculated in energy domain. Additional discussion of the crystallization process based on the evolution of hyperfine magnetic fields is presented, too.