Surface tension and viscosity of liquid Pd43Cu27Ni10P20 measured in a levitation device under microgravity

NPJ Microgravity. 2019 Feb 25:5:4. doi: 10.1038/s41526-019-0065-4. eCollection 2019.

Abstract

Here we present measurements of surface tension and viscosity of the bulk glass-forming alloy Pd43Cu27Ni10P20 performed during containerless processing under reduced gravity. We applied the oscillating drop method in an electromagnetic levitation facility on board of parabolic flights. The measured viscosity exhibits a pronounced temperature dependence following an Arrhenius law over a temperature range from 1100 K to 1450 K. Together with literature values of viscosity at lower temperatures, the viscosity of Pd43Cu27Ni10P20 can be well described by a free volume model. X-ray diffraction analysis on the material retrieved after the parabolic flights confirm the glassy nature after vitrification of the bulk samples and thus the absence of crystallization during processing over a wide temperature range.