Stress Fields and Energies of

Dislocation
 Stress Field Around Dislocations
• Dislocations are defects; hence, they introduce stresses
and strains in the surrounding lattice of a material.

• The mathematical treatment of these stresses and strains

can be substantially simplified if the medium is
considered to be isotropic and continuous.

• Under conditions of isotropy, a dislocation is completely

described by the line and Burgers vectors.
• With this in mind, and considering the simplest situation,
dislocations are assumed to be straight, infinitely long
lines.

• Figure 14-1 shows a hollow cylinder sectioned along the

longitudinal direction. This is an idealization of the
strains around an edge dislocation.
Edge Dislocation

Figure 14-1. Simple model for edge dislocation.

• The deformation fields can be obtained by cutting a slit

longitudinally along a thick-walled cylinder and displacing
the surface by b perpendicular to the dislocation line.
Figure 14-2b. Deformation of a circle containing an edge
dislocation. The unstrained circle is shown by a dashed line.
The solid line represents the circle after the dislocation has been
introduced.
• The cylinder, with external radius R, was longitudinally
and transversally displaced by the Burgers vector b,
which is perpendicular to the cylinder axis in the
representation of an edge dislocation.

• An internal hole with radius ro is made through the

center.

• This is done to simplify the mathematical treatment.

• In a continuous medium, the stresses on the center
would build up and become infinite in the absence of a
hole; in real dislocations the crystalline lattice is
periodic, and this does not occur.

• In mechanics terminology, this is called singularity. A

“singularity” is a spike, or a single event. For instance,
the Kilimanjaro is a singularity in the African plans.

• Therefore, we “drill out” the central core, which is a

way of reconciling the continuous-medium hypothesis
with the periodic nature of the structure.
• To analyze the stresses around a dislocation, we use the
formal theory of elasticity.

• For that, one has to use the relationships between

stresses and strains (constitutive relationships), the
equilibrium equations, the compatibility equations, and
the boundary conditions.

• Hence, the problem is somewhat elaborate.

Stress Field Due to Edge Dislocations

by (3 x 2  y 2 ) (14.1)
 x   o
x2  y 2

by ( x 2  y 2 ) (14.2)
 y   o
( x2  y 2 )2

2 o vy
 z  v( x   y )  2 (14.3)
x  y2

where
G
o  (14.4)
2 (1  v)
 bx( x 2  y 2 )
 xy   o 2 2 2 (14.5)
(x  y )

 xy   yz  0 (14.6)

 The stress field for edge dislocatio n is given by :

  x  xy 0 
 
 edge   xy  y 0  (14.7)
 
0 0 z 
• The largest normal stress  x is along the x-axis.
– This is compressive--- above slip plane.
– tensile---------- below slip plane.

 xy shear stress is maximum in the slip plane, i.e. when

y=0

• The stress field can also be written in Polar Coordinates,

and this is given as:
  ob sin 
 r    (14.8)
r

b cos
 r  r   o (14.9)
r
Screw Dislocation

Figure 14-2a. Simple model for screw dislocation.

• The deformation field can be obtained by cutting a slit

longitudinally along a thick-walled cylinder and displacing
a surface by b parallel to the dislocation line.
Stress Field Due to Screw Dislocations
• This has complete cylindrical symmetry
• The non zero components are:
Gb y
 xz   (14.10)
2 x 2  y 2
Gb 2
 yz   (14.11)
x x2  y2
• In Cartesian coordinate, the stress field matrix is given
as:
0 0  
 xz 
 screw  0 0  yz  (14.12)
 
  xz  yz 0 
• There are no extra half plane of atoms.
Therefore, there are no compressive or tensile normal
stresses.

• The stress field of the screw dislocation can also be

expressed in Polar-coordinate system as:

Gb
  (14.13)
2r
Strain Energy
• The elastic deformation energy of a dislocation can be
found by integrating the elastic deformation energy
over the whole volume of the deformed crystal. The
deformation energy is given for

(a) Edge Dislocation

1 r1 1 r1 2 dr
U  r  r bdr  r  ob cos (14.14)
2 o 2 o r

Gb 2 r1
U ln (14.15)
4 (1  v) ro
(b) Screw Dislocation
1r Gb 2 r1
U  r z bdr 
1 ln (14.16)
2 o
4 ro

• Note that: U  Gb 2 (14.17)

for both edge and screw dislocations

• If we add the core energy (ro ~ b), the total Energy will be
given by:
Gb 2 r1 (14.18)
Ut  ln
4 b
• For an annealed crystal: r1~ 10-5cm, b ~ 2 x10-8 cm

 r1 
 ln   2
b

Therefore, Gb 2
U (14.19)
2

• Strain energy of dislocation ~ 8eV for each atom plane

threaded by the dislocation.
• Core energy ~0.5eV per atom plane
• Free energy of crystal increases by introducing a
dislocation.
Forces on Dislocations

• When a sufficiently high stress is applied to a crystal:

 Dislocation move

Produce plastic deformation

Slip (glide) Climb (high Temperatures)

• When dislocations move it responds as
though it experiences a force equal to the work done
divided by the distance it moves

• The force is regarded as a glide force if no climb is

involved.
 dl

b
ds

Figure 14-3. Force acting on a dislocation line.

• The crystal planes above & below the slip plane will be
displaced relative to each other by b
 dlds b
• Average shear displacement =   (14-20)
 A 
where, A is the area of the slip plane

• The external force on the area is A

Therefore, work done when the elements of slip occur is:

 dl ds 
dW  A  b (14-21)
 A 
• The glide force F on a unit length of dislocation is defined
as the work done when unit length of dislocation moves
unit distance.

dW dW
F   b (14.22)
ds dl dA

F  b (14.23)
Therefore,

• Shear stress in the glide plane resolved in the direction of

b
Line Tension:

• In addition to the force due to an externally applied stress,

a dislocation has a line tension, T which is defined as the
energy per unit length = force tending to straighten the
line

• The is analogous to the surface tension of a soap bubble

or a liquid.

U el  Gb 2 (Energy)
• Consider the curved dislocation. The line tension will
produce forces tending to straighten the line & so reduce
the total energy of the line.
 

Figure 14-4. Forces on a curved dislocation

line.
• The direction of the net force is perpendicular to the
dislocation and towards the center of curvature

F  2T sin  (14.24)

• For small  , F ~ 2T 

ds 1
• But sin   *
2 R

dislocation segment Radius of curvature

 ds 1
 F  2T * *
2 R
Tds
 (14.25)
R

• The line will only remain curved if there is a shear

stress which produces a force on the dislocation line in
the opposite sense. [recall equation 14.23]

F  bds (14.26)

• equation 14.25 & 14.26 gives

Tds
bds 
R
 T
 (14.27)
bR

Recall T  Gb 2

Gb 2 Gb
  (14.28)
bR R

Stress required to bend a dislocation to a radius R

• A more general form of eqn 14.23 is given as

F  t  (  b)
or (14.29)
t G
where, t is the dislocation line vector
G   b

• Expanding equation 14.29 gives:

i j k
F   t1 t2 t3 (14.30)
G1 G2 G3
F   (t2G3  t3G2 )i  (t3G1  t1G3 ) j  t1G2  t2G1 )k 

F  (t3G2  t2G3 )i  (t1G3  t3G1 ) j  t2G1  t1G2 )k  (14.31)

• Note eqns. 14.26, 14.29 & 14.31 are the same

• A particular direct applicant of these is in the

understanding of the Frank-Read dislocation
multiplication source
   11  12  13   b1 
   (14.32)
G    b    21  22  23   b2 
   b 
 31 32 33   3 

G1   11b1   12b2   13b3

G2   21b1   22b2   23b3 (14.33)
G3   31b1   32b2   33b3

• Forces on dislocations can be due to other dislocations,

precipitates, point defects, thermal gradients, second-
phases, etc.