Insights from the Lattice-Strain Evolution on Deformation Mechanisms in Metallic-Glass-Matrix Composites

In situ high-energy synchrotron X-ray diffraction experiments and micromechanics-based finite element simulations have been conducted to examine the lattice-strain evolution in metallic-glass-matrix composites (MGMCs) with dendritic crystalline phases dispersed in the metallic-glass matrix. Significant plastic deformation can be observed prior to failure from the macroscopic stress–strain curves in these MGMCs. The entire lattice-strain evolution curves can be divided into elastic–elastic (denoting deformation behavior of matrix and inclusion, respectively), elastic–plastic, and plastic–plastic stages. Characteristics of these three stages are governed by the constitutive laws of the two phases (modeled by free-volume theory and crystal plasticity) and geometric information (crystalline phase morphology and distribution). The load-partitioning mechanisms have been revealed among various crystalline orientations and between the two phases, as determined by slip strain fields in crystalline phase and by strain localizations in matrix. Implications on ductility enhancement of MGMCs are also discussed.