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Spatially heterogeneous dynamics in a metallic glass forming liquid imaged by electron correlation microscopy

Pei Zhang,J. Maldonis,Ze Liu,J. Schroers,P. Voyles

Published 2017 in Nature Communications

ABSTRACT

Supercooled liquids exhibit spatial heterogeneity in the dynamics of their fluctuating atomic arrangements. The length and time scales of the heterogeneous dynamics are central to the glass transition and influence nucleation and growth of crystals from the liquid. Here, we report direct experimental visualization of the spatially heterogeneous dynamics as a function of temperature in the supercooled liquid state of a Pt-based metallic glass, using electron correlation microscopy with sub-nanometer resolution. An experimental four-point space-time correlation function demonstrates a growing dynamic correlation length, ξ, upon cooling of the liquid toward the glass transition temperature. ξ as a function of the relaxation time τ are in good agreement with Adam-Gibbs theory, inhomogeneous mode-coupling theory and random first-order transition theory of the glass transition. The same experiments demonstrate the existence of a nanometer thickness near-surface layer with order of magnitude shorter relaxation time than inside the bulk.Glass forming liquids near the glass transition exhibit spatially heterogeneous dynamics, but it remains challenging to study their dynamics and structural origin on an atomic scale. Zhang et al. visualize liquid dynamics at a sub-nanometer and millisecond resolution using electron correlation microscopy.

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