

Molecular Dynamics Simulation of the Deformation of Al Nanopillars
Abstract
Molecular dynamics are employed to simulate the compression process of Al nanopillar with both free and rigid side surface boundary conditions. In both conditions, the results show that plastic deformation behaviors are governed by intense dislocation activities including nucleation, propagation, annihilation, and interaction. In addition, rigid surface can trap dislocations inside the pillar and finally increase the yield strength. The results are in agreement with recent compression experimental results.
Keywords
molecular dynamics; compression; dislocation activities; nanopillarsText