The role of the interface stiffness tensor on grain boundary dynamics

F Abdeljawad and SM Foiles and AP Moore and AR Hinkle and CM Barr and NM Heckman and K Hattar and BL Boyce, ACTA MATERIALIA, 158, 440-453 (2018).

DOI: 10.1016/j.actamat.2018.06.025

Grain boundary (GB) properties and associated anisotropies due to the boundary's geometric degrees of freedom (DOF) greatly influence many of the salient features of polycrystalline aggregates, and as a consequence the observable properties of the material. Through theoretical analysis and atomistic simulations, we show that when considering the GB plane normal DOF, the GB interface stiffness tensor plays a paramount role in a wide range of GB dynamical processes. As a demonstration, we examine the interface stiffness tensor of Sigma 3 GBs in nickel and show that the stiffness can be much larger in magnitude and more anisotropic than the GB energy itself. Moreover, it is found that a wide range of inclinations exhibit negative stiffness values, a signature of a structural instability. This is the first study to consider the complete spatial description of the GB stiffness tensor, where both angular variations describing the interface plane normal are explored. In broad terms, our results highlight the integral role that the stiffness tensor plays in GB interfacial phenomena, such as curvature-driven flow and faceting instabilities. (C) 2018 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Return to Publications page