Plastic-strain localization in barium fluoride single crystals at elevated temperatures

The strain distribution is studied in BaF₂ crystals subjected to compression tests along [110] and [112] at a constant strain rate in the temperature range T = (0.22–0.77)T _m. At T > 0.5T _m, the plastic strain in deformed samples is found to be strongly localized in narrow bands, where the shear strain reaches several hundred percent. The degree of localization increases with temperature. Localized-shear microbands are shown to be oriented along {001}〈110〉 slip systems. The phenomenon of serrated yielding is detected, and stress jumps (serrations) are established to correlate with the formation of shear zones.