Fabrication and mechanical properties of graphene-induced in-situ TiC reinforced bulk metallic glass composites

Bulk metallic glass composites (BMGCs) overcome the brittleness of bulk metallic glasses, but they generally suffer from insufficient strength. Here, thin-layer graphene was grown in-situ on a porous Ti skeleton by low-temperature chemical vapor deposition, and TiC-reinforced BMGCs were fabricated via high-vacuum melt infiltration. The results show that the addition of graphene significantly enhances the compressive strength and ductility of BMGCs. Mechanistically, in-situ formed TiC achieves strengthening effects mainly through load transfer and dislocation slip suppression. Meanwhile, it triggers high-density dislocation multiplication and promotes the formation of abundant shear bands, improving plastic deformability. This novel strategy enables the facile fabrication of high-strength and high-ductility BMGCs.