Unified framework for dislocation-based defect energetics

We present a unified framework for the calculation of dislocation-based defect energetics, and then validate this approach by considering both the self and interaction energies of combinations of grain boundaries and cracks. We obtain in a straightforward manner well-known quantities, such as the energy of a low-angle tilt boundary, as well as other lesser known results, including boundary/boundary and crack/boundary interaction energies, from a common formalism based on linear elasticity. This approach, in combination with simple dimensional analysis, permits the rapid calculation of defect energetics.