Abstract
This article examines the processes of structure formation occurring during joint plastic deformation by the explosion of copper and molybdenum. These components are dissimilar metals with very limited mutual solubility under normal conditions, and the circumstances allowing for their interaction, as well as the products of the mechanochemical reactions of such interactions, have not been sufficiently studied and require new approaches. A cluster approach was used to describe the processes of structure formation, which describes phase formation as the process transitioning of the polyhedron of the initial phase into the polyhedron of the final phase. This work shows that under the conditions under consideration, not only is the formation of solid solutions in the contact zone with smooth concentration transitions from one component to another possible, but also the formation of new structural states, which can be represented as localized icosahedral atomic configurations (amorphous metal clusters). Such a structure is capable of locally strengthening the composite, which is confirmed by microhardness studies.