Formation of amorphous superconducting transition-metal alloys by liquid quenching on hot substrates

Abstract
An improved cooling rate has been achieved by liquid quenching on a hot substrate, which facilitates the preparation of amorphous and metastable crystalline states of refractory-metal-based alloys. The effectiveness has been proved by the experimental results for Mo-Zr and Nb-Si-Ge alloys. A single amorphous phase was obtained from 40–60 at. % Zr. In the Nb-Si-Ge alloy system, amorphous and metastable A15 phases were obtained in a wide composition range. The superconducting properties and thermal stability of these phases have been studied.