Formation of dislocation patterns under irradiation

The interaction energy between point defects and dislocation patterns (such as the pile-up of dislocation loops and the dislocation wall) is derived. The bias for interstitial absorption by a dislocation in a pattern is shown to be lower than that of an isolated dislocation. The dislocation patterning is proposed to be driven by the dependence of dislocation bias on the dislocation arrangement.