Simulations were made of grain-boundary motion in nanocrystalline Ni. The sample, which contained 200 grains with a 5nm average grain size, was deformed to strain levels of up to 12% at room temperature using molecular dynamics techniques and an empirical potential. Grain boundary mobility was observed for distances of up to 2.5nm (half of the grain size). The results supported the concept of stress-driven grain-boundary migration in nanocrystalline materials being part of the basic deformation mechanism.

Grain Boundary Migration during Room Temperature Deformation of Nanocrystalline Ni. D.Farkas, A.Frøseth, H.Van Swygenhoven: Scripta Materialia, 2006, 55[8], 695-8