A strong metal need not be a heavy metal, and research pioneered
by William Johnson, a professor of materials science at the California Institute
of Technology, has proved just that. His lab in Pasadena has developed a
substance called glassy metal- or amorphous metal- that is less than half the
weight of conventional alloys and more than twice as strong. Amorphous metals
are also remarkably malleable and behave in much the same way as plastic.
One basic property sets these new materials apart from the average
metal alloys: amorphous metals are rapidly cooled and their atoms frozen in
place before there is a chance for crystallization to occur. Because glassy
metals do not contain crystals, they are not subject to the denting, corrosion,
and tearing problems that result when the crystals that are typical of
conventional metals are pushed out of alignment.
Glassy metals like Indium Tin Oxide and Lithium Tetraborate on top of that are transparent.