Size dependent deformation behaviour and dislocation mechanisms in 〈1 0 0〉 Cu nanowires

Abstract

Molecular dynamics simulations have been performed to understand the size-dependent tensile deformation behaviour of 〈1 0 0〉 Cu nanowires at 10 K. The influence of nanowire size has been examined by varying square cross-section width (d) from 0.723 to 43.38 nm using constant length of 21.69 nm. The results indicated that the yielding in all the nanowires occurs through nucleation of partial dislocations. Following yielding, the plastic deformation in small size nanowires occurs mainly by slip of partial dislocations at all strains, while in large size nanowires, slip of extended dislocations has been observed at high strains in addition to slip of partial dislocations. Further, the variations in dislocation density indicated that the nanowires with d > 3.615 nm exhibit dislocation exhaustion at small strains followed by dislocation starvation at high strains. On the other hand, small size nanowires with d < 3.615 nm displayed mainly dislocation starvation at all strains. The average length of dislocations has been found to be same and nearly constant in all the nanowires. Both the Young’s modulus and yield strength exhibited a rapid decrease at small size nanowires followed by gradual decrease to saturation at larger size. The observed linear increase in ductility with size has been correlated with the pre- and post-necking deformation. Finally, dislocation–dislocation interactions leading to the formation of various dislocation locks, the dislocation–stacking fault interactions resulting in the annihilation of stacking faults and the size dependence of dislocation–surface interactions have been discussed.     

Ordinary dislocation configurations in high Nb-containing TiAl alloy deformed at high temperatures

Abstract

High Nb-containing TiAl (Nb–TiAl) alloys possess mechanical properties at elevated temperatures superior to conventional TiAl alloys. However, the strengthening mechanisms induced by Nb addition have been discussed controversial for a long time. In the present study, the dislocation structures in a polycrystalline high Nb–TiAl alloy after tensile tests at 700 and 900 °C were investigated by transmission electron microscope (TEM) observation. The results show that abundant double cross slip of ordinary dislocations is activated in the samples deformed at 700 °C. The dislocations are pinned at the jogs and numerous dipoles are observed. Debris can be commonly observed in the vicinity of screw dislocations. Trace analysis shows that the cross-slip plane is (1?1?0)γ at 700 °C but (1?1?1)γ octahedral plane at 900 °C. Three-dimensional (3D) dislocation structures, caused by cross-slip and annihilation of ordinary dislocations, were observed along the screw orientation. The dipoles and debris produced by high-temperature cross slip can be important for the strengthening of high Nb–TiAl alloys.     

On definitions and assumptions in the dislocation theory for solid solutions

A recent paper criticized the standard treatment of Cottrell atmospheres, relevant to solid-solution hardening. We show that the treatment in current texts is correct within the standard assumptions of dislocation theory. Nonlinear treatments of the atmosphere are discussed. We also show that no current theory of such atmospheres includes complete nonlinear screening of the dislocation strain field.     

Crystal plasticity modeling of irradiation growth in Zircaloy-2

Abstract

A physically based reaction-diffusion model is implemented in the visco-plastic self-consistent (VPSC) crystal plasticity framework to simulate irradiation growth in hcp Zr and its alloys. The reaction-diffusion model accounts for the defects produced by the cascade of displaced atoms, their diffusion to lattice sinks and the contribution to crystallographic strain at the level of single crystals. The VPSC framework accounts for intergranular interactions and irradiation creep, and calculates the strain in the polycrystalline ensemble. A novel scheme is proposed to model the simultaneous evolution of both, number density and radius, of irradiation-induced dislocation loops directly from experimental data of dislocation density evolution during irradiation. This framework is used to predict the irradiation growth behaviour of cold-worked Zircaloy-2 and trends compared to available experimental data. The role of internal stresses in inducing irradiation creep is discussed. Effects of grain size, texture and external stress on the coupled irradiation growth and creep behaviour are also studied and compared with available experimental data.     

Which stresses affect the glide of screw dislocations in bcc metals?

By direct application of stress in molecular statics calculations we identify the stress components that affect the glide of 1/2?111? screw dislocations in bcc tungsten. These results prove that the hydrostatic stress and the normal stress parallel to the dislocation line do not play any role in the dislocation glide. Therefore, the Peierls stress of the dislocation cannot depend directly on the remaining two normal stresses that are perpendicular to the dislocation but, instead, on their combination that causes an equibiaxial tension-compression (and thus shear) in the plane perpendicular to the dislocation line. The Peierls stress of 1/2?111? screw dislocations then depends only on the orientation of the plane in which the shear stress parallel to the Burgers vector is applied and on the magnitude and orientation of the shear stress perpendicular to the slip direction.     

A phenomenological model for bake hardening in minimal carbon steels

The essence of bake hardening is to exploit the classical strain ageing in a positive way to increase the strength of the formed steel sheets used in outer body panel of a passenger car during the paint-baking operation. A new model that takes into account the strengthening contributions from Cottrell atmosphere and precipitate formation has been developed in the present work. The model predicts the increase in strength as a function of the amount of free solute C (calculated as a function of the annealing temperature), the amount of deformation, ageing temperature and time. The model predictions have been found to agree quite well with the experimental results; the individual contributions of Cottrell atmosphere and precipitation strengthening have been quantified.     

Mesoscale strain measurement in deformed crystals: A comparison of X-ray microdiffraction with electron backscatter diffraction

Mapping of residual stresses at the mesoscale is increasingly practical thanks to technological developments in electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) and X-ray microdiffraction using high brilliance synchrotron sources. An analysis is presented of a Cu single crystal deformed in compression to about 10% macroscopic strain. Local orientation measurements were made on sectioned and polished specimens using EBSD and X-ray microdiffraction. In broad strokes, the results are similar to each other with orientations being observed that are on the order of 5° misoriented from that of the original crystallite. At the fine scale it is apparent that the X-ray technique can distinguish features in the structure that are much finer in detail than those observed using EBSD even though the spatial resolution of EBSD is superior to that of X-ray diffraction by approximately two orders of magnitude. The results are explained by the sensitivity of the EBSD technique to the specimen surface condition. Dislocation dynamics simulations show that there is a relaxation of the dislocation structure near the free surface of the specimen that extends approximately 650 Å into the specimen. The high spatial resolution of the EBSD technique is detrimental in this respect as the information volume extends only 200 Å or so into the specimen. The X-rays probe a volume on the order of 2 µm in diameter, thus measuring the structure that is relatively unaffected by the near-surface relaxation.     

Dislocation content of geometrically necessary boundaries aligned with slip planes in rolled aluminium

Previous studies have revealed that dislocation structures in metals with medium-to-high stacking fault energy, depend on the grain orientation and therefore on the slip systems. In the present work, the dislocations in eight slip-plane-aligned geometrically necessary boundaries (GNBs) in three grains of near 45° ND rotated cube orientation in lightly rolled pure aluminium are characterized in great detail using transmission electron microscopy. Dislocations with all six Burgers vectors of the ½?1?1?0? type expected for fcc crystals were observed but dislocations from the four slip systems expected active dominate. The dislocations predicted inactive are primarily attributed to dislocation reactions in the boundary. Two main types of dislocation networks in the boundaries were identified: (1) a hexagonal network of the three dislocations in the slip plane with which the boundary was aligned; two of these come from the active slip systems, the third is attributed to dislocation reactions (2) a network of three dislocations from both of the active slip planes; two of these react to form Lomer locks. The results indicate a systematic boundary formation process for the GNBs. Redundant dislocations are not observed in significant densities.     

The austenite microstructure evolution in a duplex stainless steel subjected to hot deformation

Abstract

The austenite microstructure evolution and softening processes have been studied in a 23Cr–6Ni–3Mo duplex stainless steel, comprising equal fractions of austenite and ferrite, deformed in uniaxial compression at 1000 °C using strain rates of 0.1 and 10 s^?1. The texture and microstructure evolution within austenite was similar in character for both the strain rate used. The observed large-scale subdivision of austenite grains/islands into complex-shaped deformation bands, typically separated by relatively wide transition regions, has been attributed to the complex strain fields within this phase. Organised, self-screening microband arrays were locally present within austenite and displayed a crystallographic character for a wide range of austenite orientations. The microband boundaries were aligned with the traces of {1?1?1} slip planes containing slip systems having high, although not necessarily the highest possible, Schmid factors. The slightly lower mean intercept length and higher mean misorientation obtained for the sub-boundaries at the higher strain rate can be ascribed to the expected more restricted dynamic recovery processes compared to the low strain rate case. Dynamic recrystallisation within austenite was extremely limited and mainly occurred via the strain-induced migration of the distorted original twin boundaries, followed by the formation of multiple twinning chains.