Improved oxidation resistance of Cu60Zr30Ti10 BMG with plasma immersion ion implantation

The influences of nitrogen ion implantation on the Cu60Zr30Ti10 bulk metallic glass were investigated. It was found that the surface composition and structure of the nitrogen-ion implanted metallic glasses were different from those of the as-cast one and the oxidation resistance was improved by the surface modification process. Grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXRD) showed that the implanted samples remained amorphous but with some ZrO2 and copper oxides on the surface. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) results further revealed that a thin ZrN layer is formed while no Cu atom can be observed on the top surface of the implanted samples. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) showed an improved oxidation resistance of the implanted samples compared with the as-cast metallic glass. Both as-cast and implanted metallic glasses formed ZrO2 and copper oxides after oxidation. This was consistent with our observations in scanning electron microscopy (SEM).