Creating Gallium-based alloys with the lowest melting point via reverse design approach

Abstract

Gallium-based low-melting-point alloys, also known as gallium-based liquid metals, are widely used across various fields due to their excellent convective properties. However, their phase transition and volume expansion during freezing may present safety risks, which highlights the need for alloys with even lower melting points for enhanced adaptability in low-temperature environments. In this study, we introduce an active learning-based reverse design framework to accurately identify gallium-based alloys with reduced melting points. Through two rounds of iteration, we successfully designed and synthesized Ga_60.40In_22.49Sn_15.60Zn_1.51 and Ga_59.33In_24.74Sn_14.51Zn_1.42, with melting points of 6.80 °C and 6.85 °C, which surpassed the lowest record of 8 °C reported. These findings demonstrate that this active learning-based reverse design method can significantly accelerate the development of low-melting-point alloys and offer valuable insights for the reverse design of other materials.