Notch fatigue of Cu50Zr50 metallic glasses under cyclic loading: molecular dynamics simulations

Abstract Molecular dynamics simulation is performed to simulate the tension–compression fatigue of notched metallic glasses (MGs), and the notch effect of MGs is explored. The notches will accelerate the accumulation of shear transition zones, leading to faster shear banding around the notches’ root causing it to undergo severe plastic deformation. Furthermore, a qualitative investigation of the notched MGs demonstrates that fatigue life gradually becomes shorter with the increase in sharpness until it reaches a critical scale. The fatigue performance of blunt notches is stronger than that of sharp notches. Making the notches blunter can improve the fatigue life of MGs.