Molecular dynamics simulations were presented to illustrate the pyramidal slip processes on the {10•1} plane (also a twinning plane) in magnesium. The simulations reveal an interesting slip mode consisting of two separate partial dislocations that nucleate independently. These dislocations glide in a slightly corrugated fashion on the non-close-packed {10•1} plane, each having both 〈c〉 and 〈a〉 components. The first dislocation glides with an effective Burgers vector, 1/2•1/2[01•2] (1/2[01•2] was also the twinning vector η1), and the second dislocation with an effective Burgers vector 1/2•1/2[01•2] + 1/2•1/3[2¯1•0]. When operating separately, the first incomplete dislocation leads to a wide stacking fault on the {10•1} plane. When the second dislocation follows and combines with the first dislocation at the surface, the net end result was equivalent to a 〈c + a〉 dislocation. However, inside the crystal there was no unit 〈c + a〉 dislocation per se or its splitting.

Pyramidal Slip in Magnesium - Dislocations and Stacking Fault on the {10¯11} Plane. B.Li, E.Ma: Philosophical Magazine, 2009, 89[14], 1223-35