Study of the electromechanical behavior of metals using a microdevice method

Abstract eng:
The passage of low-density electric current (10's-100's of A/mm2) through metals to improve their formability is becoming an accepted practice in the manufacturing industry. In this study, we seek to determine if, as suggested, the formability is simply due to Joule heating or an entirely new class of deformation mechanism, such as electrically induced plasticity. We have developed a micro-device testing method that allows in situ observation of electromechanical behavior in metals in transmission electron microscopes. The advantage of this method is that due to the nanoscale size of the specimen high current densities are achieved without appreciable increase in temperature, which removes the Joule heating aspect. We have used this method to study the in situ behavior of single crystal copper (SCC) under nominal strain and current density of up to 5000 A/mm2. The results show that at least for SCC electric current does not affect dislocation behavior.

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