Plasticity dependence on amorphous continuity in Fe-SiOC dual-phase nanocomposites

•Introducing a continuous amorphous phase is a more effective method to achieve large plasticity and high strength in NC metals than the disconnection amorphous phase.•The continuous amorphous can improve the strain-hardening capability of nanograins.•The strong constraint effect of the interconnected amorphous phase can enforce adjacent nanograins to uniformly co-deform.