Glassy nano-materials

A method for forming a metallic alloy containing spinodal glass matrix microconstituent (SGMM) comprising:

• supplying a metallic alloy comprising Fe at a level of 45.0 atomic percent to 71 atomic percent;
• Ni at a level of 4.0 atomic percent to 9.0 atomic percent;
• B at a level of 11.0 atomic percent to 16 atomic percent;
• Si at a level of 0.3 atomic percent to 4.0 atomic percent, chromium at a level of 12 at % to 19 at % and does not include cobalt;
• melting said alloy;
• and
• forming said spinodal glass matrix microconstituent through spinodal decomposition of said metallic alloy wherein said metallic alloy upon cooling separates into two distinct phases that are different in chemical composition and physical properties, wherein said phase formation is not nucleation controlled and said SGMM structure includes one or more semicrystalline or crystalline phases wherein the semicrystalline phase comprises clusters exhibiting a largest linear dimension of 2.0 nm or less and said crystalline phase comprises clusters exhibiting a largest linear dimension of greater than 2.0 nm and a glass matrix where the structural units in said glass matrix have a size of 5 Å to 100 Å;
• wherein said alloy containing said SGMM structure has an ultimate tensile strength in the range of 0.4 GPa to 3.9 GPa and tensile elongation in the range of 0.4% to 5.5%.