Mechanical Properties of CuZr Amorphous Metallic Nanofoam at Various Temperatures Investigated by Molecular Dynamics Simulation

YH Zhang and HJ Zhou and XM Liu, MATERIALS, 18, 3423 (2025).

DOI: 10.3390/ma18143423

Metallic nanofoams with amorphous structures demonstrate exceptional properties and significant potential for diverse applications. However, their mechanical properties at different temperatures are still unclear. By using molecular dynamics simulation, this study investigates the mechanical responses of representative CuZr amorphous metallic nanofoam (AMNF) under uniaxial tension and compression at various temperatures. Our results reveal that the mechanical properties, such as Young's modulus, yield stress, and maximum stress, exhibit notable temperature sensitivity and tension-compression asymmetry. Under tensile loading, the Young's modulus, yield strength, and peak stress exhibit significant reductions of approximately 30.5%, 33.3%, and 32.9%, respectively, as the temperature increases from 100 K to 600 K. Similarly, under compressive loading, these mechanical properties experience even greater declines, with the Young's modulus, yield strength, and peak stress decreasing by about 34.5%, 38.0%, and 41.7% over the same temperature range. The tension-compression asymmetry in yield strength is temperature independent. Interestingly, the tension-compression asymmetry in elastic modulus becomes more pronounced at elevated temperatures, which is attributed to the influence of surface energy effects. This phenomenon is further amplified by the increased disparity in surface-area-to-volume ratio variations between tensile and compressive loading at higher temperatures. Additionally, as the temperature rises, despite material softening, the structural resistance under large tensile strains improves due to delayed ligament degradation and more uniform deformation distribution, delaying global failure.

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