Soft-mechanochemical synthesis of Fe-B amorphous nanoparticles for the preparation of Fe-B nanoglass

Synthesis of high-purity and ultrafine amorphous nanoparticles (AmN) is critical for nanoglass fabrication. Herein, high-purity Fe 67 B 33 AmN with an average size of ∼12.5 nm (counted from 240 nanoparticles via ImageJ) were synthesized for the first time via a soft-mechanochemical method. These AmN were consolidated into a partially dense Fe-B nanoglass with a crystallization temperature of ∼450 °C. Nanoindentation tests reveal that the nanoglass has an average hardness of 6.6 ± 0.3 GPa and an elastic modulus of 114 ± 4 GPa, and undergoes homogeneous deformation without shear band formation. This work demonstrates the soft-mechanochemical method as a promising route for preparing ultrafine AmN for nanoglass fabrication.