Dislocation Mean Free Paths and Strain Hardening of Crystals
B. Devincre,1
T. Hoc,2
L. Kubin1*
Predicting the strain hardening properties of crystals constitutes
a long-standing challenge for dislocation theory. The main difficulty
resides in the integration of dislocation processes through
a wide range of time and length scales, up to macroscopic dimensions.
In the present multiscale approach, dislocation dynamics simulations
are used to establish a dislocation-based continuum model incorporating
discrete and intermittent aspects of plastic flow. This is performed
through the modeling of a key quantity, the mean free path of
dislocations. The model is then integrated at the scale of bulk
crystals, which allows for the detailed reproduction of the
complex deformation curves of face-centered cubic crystals.
Because of its predictive ability, the proposed framework has
a large potential for further applications.
2 Laboratoire MSSMat, UMR 8579 CNRS, Ecole Centrale Paris, Grande Voie des Vignes, 92295 Chatenay-Malabry Cedex, France.
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: ladislas.kubin{at}onera.fr
