Constant strain rate molecular dynamics simulations of nanocrystalline Al demonstrated that a significant amount of dislocations that had nucleated at the grain boundaries, exhibited cross-slip via the Fleischer mechanism as they propagate through the grain. The grain boundary structure was found to strongly influence when and where cross-slip occurs, allowing the dislocation to avoid local stress concentrations that otherwise could act as strong pinning sites for dislocation propagation.

Dislocation Cross-Slip in Nanocrystalline FCC Metals. E.Bitzek, C.Brandl, P.M.Derlet, H.Van Swygenhoven: Physical Review Letters, 2008, 100[23], 235501