A computer simulation of an extended dislocation barrier in a FCC crystal

A computer simulation has been performed to examine the formation and breakdown of various extended dislocation barriers in a crystal of atomistically simulated aluminum. Under an appropriate stress tensor an extended mixed dislocation was found to decompose by one of its partial dislocations dissociating into a 1/6[110] type stairrod dislocation and a glissile partial on an intersecting glide plane. The mechanism is shown to provide an efficient way to generate stacking faults, can be relevant to twin formation, and provides a stable barrier to dislocation motion