Statistical Thermodynamics of Crystal Plasticity

TL;DR

This paper revisits the application of statistical thermodynamics to crystal plasticity, demonstrating through theoretical analysis and experimental comparison that dislocation behavior can be effectively described by thermodynamic principles, challenging longstanding assumptions.

Contribution

It provides a first-principles framework for applying statistical thermodynamics to dislocation-enabled deformation in crystalline solids, countering previous skepticism.

Findings

Thermodynamic models align with experimental data on dislocation behavior.

Statistical thermodynamics offers a viable approach to crystal plasticity.

Revisiting thermodynamics enhances understanding of material deformation processes.

Abstract

This article is written in memory of Pierre Hohenberg with appreciation for his deep commitment to the basic principles of theoretical physics. I summarize recent developments in the theory of dislocation-enabled deformation of crystalline solids. This topic is especially appropriate for the Journal of Statistical Physics because materials scientists, for decades, have asserted that statistical thermodynamics is inapplicable to dislocations. By use of simple, first-principles analyses and comparisons with experimental data, I argue that these materials scientists have been wrong, and that this field should now be revisited because of its broad-ranging intellectual and technological importance.