Mechanism of quasi-viscous flow of zinc single crystals

Abstract

Abstract This paper reports the results of mechanical investigations (tensile and relaxation tests), geometrical measurements as well as macro- and microscopic (slip traces) observations of zinc single crystals in the ‘hard’ orientation (from the line – of the standard triangle) tested in the temperature range 523–673K. Consideration of the experimental data lead to the conclusion that the quasi-viscous flow of crystals results from localized coarse slip in the basal system occurring in the structure of uniformly distributed slip in the 1st order prismatic (and/or the 1st order pyramidal) systems. The proposed mechanism explains the high strain-rate sensitivity and the ‘jerky’ character of the flow of the crystals.