Identifying surface structural changes in a newly-developed Ga-based alloy with melting temperature below 10 °C

Journal Article · 30 October 2019 · Applied Surface Science

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsusc.2019.06.203 · OSTI ID:1559251

Yu, Qing  ^[1]; Zhang, Qiubo ^[2]; Zong, Junjie ^[1]; Liu, Suya ^[1]; Wang, Xuelin ^[1]; Wang, Xiaodong ^[1]; Zheng, Haimei ^[3]; Cao, Qingping ^[1]; Zhang, Dongxian ^[4]; Jiang, Jianzhong ^[1]

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1. Zhejiang University, Hangzhou (China). International Center for New-Structured Materials (ICNSM), Laboratory of New-Structured Materials, School of Materials Science and Engineering
2. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Materials Sciences Division
3. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Materials Sciences Division; Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States). Dept. of Materials Science and Engineering; Zhejiang University, Hangzhou (China)
4. Zhejiang University, Hangzhou (China)

Surface oxidation, as one of fundamental chemical reactions in metals, greatly affects their properties. Herein, we develop a new quaternary GaInSnZn liquid metal with the melting temperature of 9.7 °C, which is the lowest among all reported Ga-based liquid metals. With high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, we directly observed the oxide layer formed on the surface of the liquid metal. The initially formed oxide layer is revealed to be amorphous and very sensitive to electron beam. Prolonged irradiation results in its structural change from amorphous to crystalline phases. The present finding refreshes the basic understanding of surface oxidization of liquid metals and opens up the possibility of tuning surface structures and morphologies by using electron beam irradiation.

• Research Organization: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES) (SC-22), Materials Sciences & Engineering Division (SC-22.2)
• Grant/Contract Number: AC02-05CH11231
• OSTI ID: 1559251
• Journal Information: Applied Surface Science, Journal Name: Applied Surface Science Journal Issue: C Vol. 492; ISSN 0169-4332
• Publisher: ElsevierCopyright Statement
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English