Plastic deformation of single crystals with the C11b structure : Effect of the c/a axial ratio

Abstract

ABSTRACTMoSi2 has a great potential for very high temperature structural applications. Plastic deformation of MoSi2 single crystals with the C11b structure is extremely anisotropic. It is caused by non-Schmid behavior of slip on {013}<331> with the higher CRSS values for orientations closer to [001]. In order to provide better understanding of key factors on such non-Schmid behavior in MoSi2 (c/a=2.45), we chose PdZr2 with a c/a axial ratio higher than 3 (c/a=3.30) and characterized the plastic deformation. Compression tests were conducted at various temperatures along [001], [010] and [110] axes. Slip on {013}<100> has the shortest Burgers vector and the largest interplanar spacing in PdZr2 and was observed to be activated for [110] with the lowest CRSS. While slip on {013}<331> can be activated even at -196°C for [001]. Although {013}<331> slip has the same Schmid factors for [001] and [010], the yield stress of the [010]-oriented crystals is about twice higher than that of the [001]-oriented crystals. Thus non-Schmid behavior of slip on {013}<331> is also observed in PdZr2, and the manner is opposite to that in MoSi2. Plastic anisotropy in the C11b structure will be discussed in terms of the c/a axial ratio.