A composite model of the plastic flow of amorphous covalent materials

A model based on the data available in the literature on the computer simulation of amorphous silicon has been proposed for describing the specific features of the plastic flow of amorphous covalent materials. The mechanism of plastic deformation involves homogeneous nucleation and growth of inclusions of a liquidlike phase under external shear stress. Such inclusions experience plastic shear, which is modeled by glide dislocation loops. The energy changes associated with the nucleation of these inclusions at room and increased temperatures have been calculated. The critical stress has been found, at which the barrierless nucleation of inclusions becomes possible. It has been shown that this stress decreases with an increase in temperature. According to the calculations, the heterogeneous (homogeneous) plastic flow of an amorphous material should be expected at relatively low (high) temperatures. Above the critical stress, the homogeneous flow is gradually replaced by the heterogeneous flow.