Correlating local structure with inhomogeneous elastic deformation in a metallic glass

The elastic response of metallic glasses (MGs) is inhomogeneous, due to the wide variation of local structural arrangements. Here, we present molecular dynamics simulations on a one-million-atoms sample of a Cu64Zr36 model MG, correlating the atomic strain and non-affine displacement with short-range order. Cu atoms in full icosahedra experience less atomic relaxation and behave stiffer, while the rest of Cu atoms contribute more to anelasticity on the timescale of simulation.