Evolution of small nickel cluster during solidification

Abstract

The liquid-to-glass transition is investigated in detail during the cooling process. The EAM potential model has been used in this simulation. The pair correlation functions and the pair analysis techniques are used to study the glass formation. Simulation results illustrate that glass formation needs a dynamical process at a proper cooling rate. The cluster changes that occur during this cooling are large. In addition to cluster changes, a dramatic split of the second peak in the pair correlation function is accompanied by the glass transition. The physical picture of the metallic glass is a disordered entanglement with a lot of icosahedra.