Polyamorphic transition in a transition metal based metallic glass under high pressure

Abstract

Pressure-induced glass-glass transition (GGT) has been reported in a few rare-earth based and main-group metallic glasses (MGs), a process during which the compressibility decreases with the transformation from a low-density to a high-density amorphous state. Herein, we report an unexpected GGT behavior in Pd-based MGs under pressure, which is characterized by an anomalous increase in the compressibility with the pressure. State-of-the-art high-energy synchrotron technique, coupled with theoretical simulations, reveals that this unique GGT behavior is primarily caused by the change in bonding characteristics, i.e., some covalentlike atomic bonds in the as-prepared state change to metallic ones under high pressure, which also leads to the increase in the compressibility. Our current findings shed light on the understanding of the nature of polyamorphic transitions in MGs.