Structural relaxation in amorphous Fe₄₀Ni₄₀P₁₄B₆alloy studied by positron annihilation

Abstract

The Doppler-broadened line shape of 511 keV gamma rays emitted from annihilating positron-electron pairs, the positron lifetime and electrical resistivity of the amorphous Fe40Ni40P14B6 alloy have been measured in the 0-500 degrees C temperature range using isochronal annealing. The W parameter of the Doppler-broadened line shape, related to core-electron annihilation, increased in two stages by annealing below the crystallisation temperature. These increases appear to be due to the loss of excess free volume in the as-quenched amorphous alloy.