Dislocations

Basic concepts
edge dislocation
screw dislocation

Characteristics of Dislocations
lattice strains

Slip Systems
slip in single crystals
polycrystalline deformation

Twinning

Edge Dislocation
In edge dislocations, distortion exists
along an extra half-plane of atoms.
These atoms also define the dislocation
line.
Motion of many of these dislocations will
result in plastic deformation

Edge dislocations move in response to

shear stress applied perpendicular to the
dislocation line.

Edge Dislocation
As the dislocation moves, the extra half
plane will break its existing bonds and form
new bonds with its neighbor opposite of the
dislocation motion.
This step is repeated in many discreet steps
until the dislocation has moved entirely through
the lattice.
After all deformation, the extra half plane forms
an edge that is one unit step wide
also called a Burgers Vector

Edge Dislocation

Edge Dislocation Examples

Ni-48Al alloy edge dislocation
the colored areas show the varying
values of the strain invariant field
around the edge dislocation
Shear was applied so that glide will
occur to the left.
Computer simulation

Screw Dislocation
The motion of a screw dislocation is also
a result of shear stress.
Motion is perpendicular to direction of
stress, rather than parallel (edge).
However, the net plastic deformation of both
edge and screw dislocations is the same.

Most dislocations can exhibit both edge

and screw characteristics. These are
called mixed dislocations.

Screw Dislocation

Screw Dislocation
Examples
Ni-48Al alloy
l=[001], [001](010) screw dislocation
showed significant movement.
Although shear was placed so that the
dislocation would move along the (010) it
moved along the (011) instead.
Computer simulation

Screw Dislocation

Mixed Dislocations
Many dislocations have both screw
and edge components to them
called mixed dislocations
makes up most of the dislocations
encountered in real life
very difficult to have pure edge or pure
screw dislocations.

Mixed Dislocations

Mixed Dislocations

Characteristics of
Dislocations
Lattice strain
as a dislocation moves through a lattice, it
creates regions of compressive, tensile and
shear stresses in the lattice.
Atoms above an edge dislocation are squeezed
together and experience compression while atoms
below the dislocation are spread apart abnormally
and experience tension. Shear may also occur near
the dislocation
Screw dislocations provide pure shear lattice strain
only.

Characteristics of
Dislocations

Characteristics of
Dislocations
During plastic deformation, the
number of dislocations increase
dramatically to densities of 1010 mm2.
Grain boundaries, internal defects
and surface irregularities serve as
formation sites for dislocations
during deformation.

Slip Systems
Usually there are preferred slip planes
and directions in certain crystal systems.
The combination of both the slip plane
and direction form the slip system.
Slip plane is generally taken as the closest
packed plane in the system
Slip direction is taken as the direction on the
slip plane with the highest linear density.

Slip Systems

FCC and BCC materials have large numbers

of slip systems (at least 12) and are
considered ductile. HCP systems have few
slip systems and are quite brittle.

Slip in Single Crystals

Even if an applied stress is purely
tensile, there are shear components
to it in directions at all but the
parallel and perpendicular directions.
Classified as resolved shear stresses
magnitude depends on applied stress,
as well as its orientation with respect to
both the slip plane and slip direction

Slip in Single Crystals

R cos cos

Polycrystalline
Deformation
Slip in polycrystalline systems is more
complex
direction of slip will vary from one crystal to
another in the system

Polycrystalline slip requires higher values of

applied stresses than single crystal systems.
Because even favorably oriented grains cannot
slip until the less favorably oriented grains are
capable of deformation.

Polycrystalline
Deformation
During deformation, coherency is
maintained at grain boundaries
grain boundaries do not rip apart, rather they
remain together during deformation.

This causes a level of constraint in the

grains, as each grains shape is formed
by the shape of its adjacent neighbors.
Most prevalent is the fact that grains will
elongate along the direction of deformation

Polycrystalline
Deformation

Dislocation Movement
across GBs
As dislocations move through polycrystalline
materials, they have to move through grains of
different orientations, which requires higher
amounts of energy, if the grains are not in the
preferred orientation.
As they travel between grains they must be
emitted across the grain boundary, usually by one
half of a partial dislocation, and then annihilated by
the second half at a time slightly after the first one.
LINK TO HELENA2.gif

Twinning
A shear force which causes atomic
displacements such that the atoms on one
side of a plane (twin boundary) mirror the
atoms on the other side.
Displacement magnitude in the twin region is
proportional to the atoms distance from the
twin plane
takes place along defined planes and directions
depending upon the system.
Ex: BCC twinning occurs on the (112)[111] system

Twinning
Slip

Twinning

orientation of atoms
remains the same

reorientation of atomic
direction across twin plane

displacements take place atomic displacement is less

in exact atomic spacings than interatomic spacing

Twinning
Properties of Twinning
occurs in metals with BCC or HCP crystal
structure
occurs at low temperatures and high rates of
shear loading (shock loading)
conditions in which there are few present slip
systems (restricting the possibility of slip)

small amount of deformation when

compared with slip.

Twinning