Triplet correlation in metallic glasses a field-ion microscopy study

Abstract

Abstract The triplet correlation of atomic positions in iron-boron based metallic glass has been studied by field-ion microscopy. The distribution function for angles between directions to the near neighbours of atoms exhibits a fairly distinct peak at 60°, a broad peak between 90° and 125°, and a shoulder around 150°. These observations are in general agreement with the predictions of a model for metallic glass based on dense random packing of hard spheres.