Temperature-induced different deformation mechanisms for compressive behavior of nanotwinned Cu: molecular dynamics simulation

Molecular dynamics method is performed for analyzing the influence of temperature on the compressive loading behavior of nanotwinned Cu. Simulation results show that the plastic deformation mechanism of nanotwinned Cu with 1.88 nm twin thickness is dominated by detwinning behavior, when the temperature is below 220 K. When the temperature is between 250 and 400 K, twin boundaries’ migration behavior controls the plastic deformation process. When temperature is below 150 K, twin boundaries have obvious hindrance to dislocations. The hindrance of twin boundaries to dislocations is not apparent above 200 K. In general, low temperatures are more conducive to detwinning behavior. This research provides guidance on controlling detwinning behavior in order to adjust the structure of nanotwinned materials.