It was noted that an accurate analysis of interaction effects between main cracks and micro-cracks, in the presence of mobile dislocations, could lead to better models for failure and plastic zone development. High stress-concentration regions such as crack tips were places where dislocations were subjected to higher forces. A computer simulation technique based upon dislocation dynamics was therefore developed in order to investigate the movement of dislocations in the presence of multiple cracks. Dislocation structures, dislocation distributions and strain-rate results were presented as junctions of applied stresses for various micro-crack positions and orientations. Simulation results gave a reasonable description of dislocation pattern development, during deformation around the cracks, and explained the shape and development of the plastic zone.

Dislocation Dynamics Simulations in the Presence of Interacting Cracks. I.Demir, A.N.Gulluoglu: Journal of Engineering Materials and Technology, 1999, 121[1], 151-8