Search arXiv⌕ Search
Home/Archive/arXiv

arXiv · 2608.19126

Avalanche-like Plasticity in Complex Concentrated Alloys: A Review Across Scales

Michal Knapek·Tomáš Tayari·Kristián Máthis·Miloš Janeček
View original source ↗Read source document ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

Complex concentrated alloys (CCAs), including high- and medium-entropy alloys, deform in chemically heterogeneous energy landscapes where dislocation glide, solute aging, twinning, phase transformation and microstructural barriers may all contribute. This review discusses avalanche-like and serrated plasticity in CCAs across scales. The first part separates the relevant length scales and methods used to access them. At microscopic and mesoscopic scales, acoustic emission (AE) and microcompression studies reveal discrete dislocation avalanches and strain bursts that may be hidden in conventional macroscopic curves. At the specimen scale, local extensometry and digital image correlation (DIC) studies of the Portevin-Le Chatelier effect show how collective defect dynamics can organize into deformation bands and macroscopic stress serrations. Together, these approaches show that plastic flow may appear smooth only as an average response, while remaining intermittent at finer scales. The second part reviews direct CCA evidence, with emphasis on AE, stress-serration statistics, microplasticity, DIC, nanoindentation and small-scale deformation. A central conclusion is that serrated flow in CCAs should not be treated as a single phenomenon. Depending on chemistry, temperature, strain rate and microstructure, it may originate from dynamic strain aging, twinning, martensitic transformation, slip localization, or a combination of these mechanisms. Reported power-law-like distributions and exponents partly overlap with those known from simpler crystals and alloys, and the present evidence does not establish a distinct CCA-specific universality class. CCAs are therefore best viewed as tunable systems in which chemical disorder, short range order, phase stability and microstructure can modify the nucleation, arrest and synchronization of collective plastic events.

Explore related subjects

cond-mat.mtrl-sci

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

Michal Knapek, Tomáš Tayari, Kristián Máthis, Miloš Janeček. 2026-08-19. Avalanche-like Plasticity in Complex Concentrated Alloys: A Review Across Scales. https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.19126

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related papers

arXiv2026

Electronic States, Spin-Orbit Coupling and Magnetism in Germanium 60° Dislocations

Defects in semiconductors have recently attracted renewed interest owing to their potential in novel quantum applications. Here we investigate the electronic and magnetic properties induced by 60° dislocations in Ge. Using large-scale DFT calculations, we determine the band structure for both the shuffle and glide sets in their lowest-energy configurations. The band structure for the shuffle set reveals defect-induced dispersive bands localized within the band gap near the $Γ$ point, whereas for the glide set, we observe strong overlap with the conduction band. Defect-induced band splitting evident away from $Γ$ reveals Rashba-Dresselhaus spin-orbit coupling, an effect previously reported only for screw dislocations. Remarkably, we find evidence that specific dislocation arrangements can stabilize antiferromagnetic ordering with sizable local magnetic moments and considerable exchange splitting between opposite spin states. These results uncover rich physics in Ge dislocations through the combination of spin-orbit coupling and magnetic ordering, potentially enabling novel defect-based functionalities in Ge devices.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗
arXiv2026

Thermal Hall resistivity and transverse entropy production in a phonon gas

Most theories of the phonon thermal Hall effect ignore phonon-phonon interactions. Here, by recalling the Senftleben-Beenakker effect in molecular gases, we argue that a magnetic field, by influencing collisions between neutral non-chiral [quasi-]particles, can induce a Hall response. Our study of two insulators with distinct crystal structures, layered honeycomb WS$_2$ and ferroelectric perovskite LiNbO$_3$, finds that $κ_{xx}$ and $κ_{xy}$ peak at nearly the same temperature in both materials, as reported in other insulators. We show that the amplitude of transverse thermal \emph{resistivity} in clean and simple insulators is of the order of $|W_\perp/B|\simeq \frac{e}{k_B u}$, where $e$ and $k_B$ are fundamental constants and $u$ is the binding energy density of the crystal. In complex and dirty insulators, $|W_\perp/B|$ is much larger and has a significant temperature dependence. Nevertheless, the peak thermal Hall \textit{angle} in all insulators remains roughly the same.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗
arXiv2026

First-principles calculations of electronic structure

The emergence of high-mobility at provides a fertile platform for exploring emergent quantum phenomena and next-generation oxide electronics. Here, using first-principles density functional theory (DFT) calculations, we uncover the microscopic origin of the formed at the interface between insulators. Despite both constituents being insulating in bulk, the heterostructure develops robust metallicity at the interface, in agreement with experimental observations. This charge redistribution stabilizes at the interface. The electronic states forming enforcing carrier motion strictly within the interfacial plane. Remarkably, the spin-up parabolic band hosting the 2DEG exhibits an exceptionally small effective mass -- indicating the potential for significantly enhanced carrier mobility. Furthermore, the calculated interfacial electron density exceeds that of by nearly an order of magnitude, consistent with experimental measurement. These findings identify the heterostructure as a compelling platform for realizing and open new avenues for engineering correlated oxide interfaces for quantum electronic applications.

cond-mat.mtrl-sci↗