Effect of Normal Load on Microscratch and Nanoindentation Behaviors of Ti₄₀Zr₁₀Cu₃₈Pd₁₂ Bulk Amorphous Alloy

The effects of normal load on microscratch and nanoindentation behaviors of Ti₄₀Zr₁₀Cu₃₈Pd₁₂ bulk amorphous alloy were investigated by using microscratch tester and nano-indenter. The results show that as the normal load increased from 2 N to 10 N, the plastic deformation at the scratches of the amorphous alloy gradually changed from uniform to localized, which led to the initiation and expansion of multiple shear bands, the scratch width increased significantly, and the accumulation of wear debris was formed at the end of the scratch. As the normal load increased from 1 mN to 7 mN, the plastic deformation at the indentation of the amorphous alloy gradually accumulated, and the elastic modulus and hardness decreased, manifesting as a strain softening phenomenon, which was related to the increase of free volume of the shear band during the deformation process.