LAUSR

Abstract Amorphous pure metals are important for technological applications and provide a simple system for the study of fundamental science. Through detailed analysis of the microscopic structure of vapor-deposited Ta film, we reveal the presence of various micro-regions with distinct packings of different atomic clusters. These results suggest that high-throughput production of atomic cluster packing can be generated during the packing of vaporized atoms on a large depositing substrate, allowing sampling the energy landscape of the system in an extended range. The proper packing of atomic clusters favoring glass formation and corresponding to stable amorphous states located in the deep valley of energy landscape can be arrested, finally giving rise to the formation of amorphous Ta states that can hardly be obtained by traditional liquid-quenching methods.