Abstract
We have examined heating-induced phase decomposition and its kinetics for Zr65Ni30Pd5 amorphous alloy in an argon atmosphere. The amorphous phase decomposes through three stages in the order of amorphous → icosahedral quasicrystal (I-Q) + amorphous → approximant cubic Zr2(Ni,Pd) → tetragonal Zr2Ni + tetragonal Zr2Pd phases. The approximant crystalline (APC) Zr2(Ni,Pd) phase includes icosahedral-like local atomic arrangements and the structural similarity between the I-Q and APC phases seems to enable the multistage phase decomposition through the precipitation of the APC phase. The primary precipitation of the I-Q phase from the amorphous phase occurs through nucleation and growth mechanisms through two-dimensional (2D) growth mode at lower heating rate and 3D growth mode at a high heating rate.