Dislocation structures around a mixed-mode fatigue crack tip introduced into a single-crystalline iron–silicon alloy was characterized by cross-sectional electron backscatter diffraction and high-voltage electron microscopy. The results showed that the crack growth was preceded by the formation of a cell band and the crack grows along cell boundaries. Crack growth rate and width of the cell band were constant despite the monotonic increase in stress intensity, which was anomalous in terms of the conventional fracture mechanics concept.

Characterization of Dislocation Structures around a Mixed-Mode Fatigue Crack Tip in a Single-Crystalline Iron–Silicon Alloy. Y.Takahashi, J.Sakamoto, M.Tanaka, K.Higashida, H.Noguchi: Scripta Materialia, 2011, 64[2], 157-60