The transient motion of a ramp-core dislocation which reached to infinity in both directions, and was assumed to jump from rest to a supersonic speed in the x-direction, was investigated analytically by using complex transform methods. A novel result of the analysis was that, instead of the Mach cone of a Volterra dislocation, there were 2 lines of stress discontinuity which propagated in the positive and negative z-directions. Within these there was an arctan delta sequence of radiated supersonic fields, as well as sub-sonic fields. The lines of discontinuity arose at the tangent point of the Mach wave-front to a cylinder with a time-dependent radius.

The Transient Motion of a Ramp-Core Supersonic Dislocation. X.Markenscoff, L.Ni: Journal of Applied Mechanics, 2001, 66[3], 656-62