Nanoscale structural evolution of gallium-copper, gallium-zinc, and gallium-bismuth alloys
Vaishnavi Krishnamurthi1, Pierre H A Vaillant2, Jitendra Mata3
1School of Engineering, RMIT University, 124 La Trobe Street, 3001 Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; School of Information Technology, Deakin University, Burwood Campus, Burwood 3125, Victoria, Australia.
Hypothesis:
Liquid metals (LMs) and alloys such as GaCu, GaZn, and GaBi may possess previously unresolved nanoscale structures that govern their physicochemical behaviour. We hypothesise that such structuring is alloy-dependent and thermally sensitive, arising from differences in material properties, growth kinetics, and thermodynamic behaviours, and that the presence of nanoscale structures can be detected and resolved using in-situ neutron scattering, supported by atomistic simulations.
Experiments:
In-situ Small Angle Neutron Scattering (SANS) was performed across a q-range of 0.004-0.5 Å-1 at 30, 60, and 90 °C on GaCu, GaZn, and GaBi alloys at 1, 2, and 5 wt%. Complementary Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations were utilised to interpret structural evolution at the atomic scale.
Findings:
The investigation demonstrates the presence of nanostructures in 1, 2 and 5 wt% GaCu alloys in the measured SANS range at 30 °C. Interestingly, these structures do not persist at elevated temperatures of 60 and 90 °C, indicating thermally driven homogenisation. In contrast, GaZn and GaBi alloys at similar concentrations do not exhibit any nanostructures, irrespective of the measured temperatures, highlighting alloy-specific structuring behaviour. These results provide new insight into nanoscale organisation within LMs and inform rational design for catalysis, electronics, and additive manufacturing applications.
