Sign determination of the57Fe quadrupole splitting in an amorphous Fe24Zr76alloy

Abstract

⁵⁷Fe Mossbauer spectra of an amorphous Fe₂₄Zr₇₆ alloy obtained both in the paramagnetic state and in applied magnetic fields show that the quadrupole splitting (QS) is almost exclusively positive. The spectra are consistent with a normally distributed QS of positive mean and a mean asymmetry parameter eta =0.67+or-0.07. The results are in contradiction with the predictions of dense random packing models and indicate the existence of strong short-range order.