DEFORMATION MECHANISM IN ALPHA-CU-AL SINGLE-CRYSTALS WITH A SPHERICAL INDENTOR .1. INDENTATION WITH STEEL BALL

Indentation tests using a steel ball were carried out on the (001), (011) and (111) cube faces of alpha-Cu-Al single crystals in order to elucidate the plastic deformation mechanism in the surface layers. The shapes of the indent and the slip traces produced on these faces were studied in detail. In addition, the dislocation density distributions around an indent on the (111) and (211BAR) faces were revealed by successively removing thin layers and developing etch pits on the exposed surfaces. Slip tends to occur in the <110> direction on the (001) and (011) faces, and in the [211BAR], [121BAR] and [112BAR] directions on the (111) face. The three-dimensional slip pattern in the case of indentation on the (111) face consists of two sets of truncated triangular pyramids that diverge and converge downwards.