Continuum understanding of twin formation near grain boundaries of FCC metals with low stacking fault energy

Metals: grain neighbours influence twin formation during deformation Grains that should not favour twin formation exhibit twinning as a result of surrounding grains acting on their boundaries. A team led by HyoungSeop Kim at the Pohang University of Science and Technology in the Republic of Korea simulated the deformation of synthetic metallic microstructures with many grains of different orientations, based on steels that deform by both dislocation slip and twinning mechanisms. Twinning first started near grain boundaries and depended on initial grain orientation but, with further deformation, strong twin activity on one side of a boundary triggered strong twin activity on the other side of that boundary. This happened even when the grain on the other side of the boundary was unfavourable to twinning. Taking into account grain neighbourhood may therefore help in optimising twin-forming alloys.